The Central Bank of Bahrain (“CBB”), as part of its consumer protection objective, works with the financial sector to develop codes of best practice, aimed at raising transparency and fairness in dealings between financial institutions and their retail clients.
The first such code, issued in July 2007, was a Code of Best Practice on Consumer Credit and Charging. It was prepared jointly by the Banker’s Society of Bahrain and the CBB. It sets out minimum standards for retail banks and financing companies to follow, when providing credit and other services on which fees and/or interest (or profit margins in the case of Shari’a compliant financing) are payable by personal customers in the Kingdom of Bahrain. These standards cover matters such as advertising, and the provision of clear and regular information to customers.
