The Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency (SAMA) has fined a local bank SR62,600 for freezing a client's account for over 17 years with no valid reason, a SAMA verdict document showed. Saudi car dealer Mohsin Al-Mahdali said that his account which had SR106,000 was frozen by the local bank in 1992. While he was trying to get it re-activated, he had to leave the country on a medical trip to Europe where he spent several years. When Al-Mahdali returned home, he again tried with the bank but in vain. The bank did not mention the reason for freezing his account, however, he said. He then filed a compensation lawsuit with SAMA asking for SR15 million in financial damages incurred throughout the past 17 years. During the SAMA investigation, the bank said that the client had not updated his data with the bank which had made it impossible to re-activate his account; an argument SAMA flatly refused to consider. The businessman said that the compensation amount of SR62,600 was not fair. He said he would appeal the verdict in a court of law.
