Saudi Arabia reportedly leaves mBridge digital-currency payments platform

A post says Saudi Arabia has ended its participation in mBridge, a platform designed to make cross-border wholesale payments faster and cheaper using central-bank digital currencies. It cites Saudi Arabia as saying it completed its planned proof of concept on May 13, 2025, after joining in June 2024; the September 20, 2026 post says the withdrawal was only then becoming publicly reported. According to the post, China, Hong Kong, the UAE and Thailand remain participants, while Macau joined in 2026. It argues that the departure alone does not establish that Riyadh is rejecting China or making a “return to the dollar.”