The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is one of the largest countries in the Middle East, bordering Iraq, Jordan, Oman,
Yemen, United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and Qatar. The country is largely an Islamic nation given the fact that
most of its citizens are Muslims. According to Al-Mulhim (2009), Saudi Arabia has one of the fastest growing
economies in the Middle East and the entire Arab World. The World Bank ranked it the largest economy in the
Middle East in the year 2009. The socio-cultural practices of this country have largely been seen as unique,
especially when compared to that of the Western countries. The Saudi society is uniquely Islamic, with most of
the laws governing the country derived from the Shariah laws. The economy of the country has been stable even
during the 2008 economic recession that affected many countries around the world. Although oil remains the
leading source of income, other economic activities such as agriculture and tourism also play an important role
in boosting the economy. The research by Tollitz (2005) has shown that the region has been experiencing
impressive growth in trade with other parts of the world. The country has also embraced the open market policy,
a fact that has enabled foreign firms to invest in the local economy. It would, therefore, be argued that the
socio-economic environment in this society has had a positive impact on the financial sector. It would be of
interest to determine the impact of this socio-economic environment on the financial sector.