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Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have been ranked among the world’s top performers for artificial intelligence adoption in financial services, securing seventh and ninth positions respectively in the Global AI for Finance Competitiveness Index (GAICI) released on Wednesday by Deep Knowledge Group, with the Hong Kong Financial Services Development Council (FSDC) serving as an observer.

The index benchmarks global AI competitiveness from a finance and economic perspective, assessing how effectively countries and financial hubs deploy artificial intelligence across financial services. It ranks 20 countries and 15 city-level finance hubs based on indicators measuring AI-for-finance capability, maturity and deployment readiness.

Saudi Arabia emerged as the fastest-scaling contender in the Gulf for AI-enabled finance, reflecting its rapid progress in integrating artificial intelligence into financial systems. The report highlighted the Kingdom’s state-led investment strategy and focus on modernising financial infrastructure as key drivers behind its strong performance. While Saudi Arabia is still developing as a global financial hub, its accelerated AI adoption is positioning it as a major regional force in shaping the future of finance.

The UAE, meanwhile, was recognised for its ability to translate AI potential into operational, regulated financial systems. The index noted that the country’s combination of state-driven AI development, globally connected financial ecosystem and strong institutional execution has established it as a front-runner in deploying AI within regulated financial markets. Rather than competing on research volume alone, the UAE was described as a “system builder”, distinguished by rapid adoption, regulatory modernisation and scalable deployment of AI-powered financial tools.

Dmitry Kaminskiy, General Partner of Deep Knowledge Group, said Saudi Arabia’s performance reflects its strategic vision and institutional commitment to AI-driven finance. He added that the UAE’s ranking underscores its capacity to deploy finance-grade AI systems that meet governance, resilience and market integrity requirements.

Globally, the index was led by the United States, followed by China, the United Kingdom, and Switzerland, with Singapore completing the top tier. According to the report, leading countries demonstrate strong multi-pillar performance, including deployment readiness, institutional capacity and ecosystem breadth, rather than reliance on a single competitive advantage.

In the city-level rankings, New York and London secured the top two positions, followed by Hong Kong, reflecting their strengths in market connectivity, institutional concentration and capital formation. Other hubs such as San Francisco, Shanghai, Singapore and Riyadh were noted for strong performance in selected dimensions, though with less comprehensive end-to-end AI deployment capability.

Dr King Au, Executive Director of the FSDC, said Hong Kong’s ranking reflects its strong institutional quality and global market connectivity, both critical for AI deployment in finance. Dr Patrick Glauner, Professor of AI at Deggendorf Institute of Technology and a co-author of the report, added that trustworthy, explainable and auditable AI models are increasingly central to competitive advantage in financial services.

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