# AFAQ

> Source: https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/standards/afaq
> research date 2026-06-04 · extracted at 2026-10-06
> Publisher: Barcoder — encyclopedia of QR, barcode and payment-code standards

Specifications:
- [The Central Bank of Bahrain introduces AFAQ (GCC RTGS) System — Central Bank of Bahrain](https://www.cbb.gov.bh/media-center/the-central-bank-of-bahrain-introduces-afaq-gcc-rtgs-system/)
- [Operating Rules for Cross Currency Payments using AFAQ Service — SAMA Rulebook](https://rulebook.sama.gov.sa/en/operating-rules-cross-currency-payments-using-afaq-service)

## Overview

**AFAQ** — the **Arabian Gulf System for Financial Automated Quick Payment Transfer** (the acronym evokes *afaq*, "horizons" in Arabic) — is the GCC's **cross-border, cross-currency Real-Time Gross Settlement (RTGS) rail**. It interlinks the national RTGS systems of the six Gulf Cooperation Council member states so that interbank payments can move across borders, in local Gulf currencies, with same-day settlement finality <sup>[1][1]</sup><sup>[3][3]</sup>. AFAQ is owned and managed by the GCC national central banks through the **Gulf Payments Company (GPC)**, headquartered in Riyadh <sup>[1][1]</sup><sup>[3][3]</sup>. It is a **wholesale settlement rail**; a retail/QR acceptance layer is not part of the current cross-currency service and remains at the roadmap stage. For the broader Arab-region comparator see [Buna](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/standards/buna); for a GCC national instant rail see [Fawran](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/standards/fawran) and [SARIE](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/standards/sarie). Qatari national context: [../countries/QA-qatar.md](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/payments/QA).

## History

GPC was established pursuant to GCC Supreme Council decisions and tasked by member governments — through their central banks — with connecting the member states' RTGS platforms <sup>[2][2]</sup>. The AFAQ regional payment system was officially launched on **10 December 2020** <sup>[2][2]</sup>. The **cross-currency** service then went live in stages by country:

- **December 2021:** Saudi Arabia and Bahrain (first live participants) <sup>[3][3]</sup>.
- **March 2022:** Kuwait joined <sup>[3][3]</sup>.
- **December 2023:** the United Arab Emirates joined <sup>[3][3]</sup>.
- **Oman and Qatar:** expected to join subsequently <sup>[3][3]</sup>.

The Central Bank of Bahrain joined AFAQ on **14 August 2021**, with first Bahraini banks (Ahli United Bank, Bahrain Islamic Bank, Bank of Bahrain and Kuwait, Eskan Bank, National Bank of Bahrain) onboarded from April 2021 <sup>[1][1]</sup>.

## Technical specification

- **Type.** Cross-border, cross-currency **RTGS** for interbank transfers between GCC countries, executed through each country's national RTGS in domestic currencies <sup>[3][3]</sup><sup>[4][4]</sup>.
- **Settlement.** Real-time gross settlement with **same-day settlement finality and irrevocability**; AFAQ connects to the National Central Banks over a highly secure private network <sup>[4][4]</sup>.
- **Currencies.** Six GCC currencies: **AED, BHD, KWD, OMR, QAR and SAR** <sup>[3][3]</sup><sup>[4][4]</sup>. Some descriptions note support for key currencies such as USD and EUR alongside local-currency transfers <sup>[5][5]</sup>.
- **Messaging.** AFAQ cross-currency uses **ISO 20022 (MX)** internally, while interfacing to the national central banks using **MT** message formats <sup>[3][3]</sup>.
- **Ownership / operation.** Owned and managed by the six GCC national central banks; operated by the Gulf Payments Company from Riyadh <sup>[1][1]</sup><sup>[3][3]</sup>.
- **Retail / QR layer.** None in the current service; AFAQ operates at the wholesale/interbank layer. (No live QR or merchant-acceptance functionality is documented in the sources reviewed.)

## Use cases

AFAQ targets **cross-border interbank and corporate fund transfers** within the GCC — moving funds quickly and at lower cost than legacy correspondent-banking routes, in local Gulf currencies, supporting trade, treasury and remittance flows across the bloc <sup>[2][2]</sup><sup>[4][4]</sup>. Its stated aim is to give banks and customers an additional channel for transferring funds faster, more securely and at lower transaction cost <sup>[1][1]</sup>.

## Implementations

Live participants are the central banks and onboarded commercial banks of **Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait and the UAE**, with **Oman and Qatar** expected to follow <sup>[3][3]</sup>. SAMA publishes formal **Operating Rules for Cross-Currency Payments using AFAQ** governing Saudi participants <sup>[6][6]</sup>. In Bahrain, early participating banks included Ahli United Bank, Bahrain Islamic Bank, Bank of Bahrain and Kuwait, Eskan Bank and National Bank of Bahrain <sup>[1][1]</sup>.

## Comparison

- **vs [Buna](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/standards/buna):** Buna, launched February 2020 by the Arab Monetary Fund under the Arab Regional Payments Clearing and Settlement Organization, is a broader multi-currency cross-border RTGS spanning the wider **Arab region** (currencies including USD, EUR, SAR, EGP, JOD, AED), with 110+ onboarded institutions <sup>[5][5]</sup>. AFAQ is narrower and **GCC-specific**, connecting the six GCC national RTGS systems in the six Gulf currencies <sup>[3][3]</sup><sup>[5][5]</sup>. The two are complementary regional rails — AFAQ for intra-GCC, Buna for the broader Arab corridor.
- **vs national instant rails ([Fawran](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/standards/fawran), [SARIE](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/standards/sarie), Aani, Fawri+):** Those operate the *domestic retail/instant* layer with alias and QR features; AFAQ operates the *cross-border wholesale settlement* layer between countries <sup>[3][3]</sup>, [../countries/QA-qatar.md](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/payments/QA).

## Fun facts

- The brand AFAQ is the Arabic word for "horizons," chosen to signal a unified Gulf payments horizon <sup>[3][3]</sup>.

## Status

**Live** for cross-currency RTGS among Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait and the UAE, with Oman and Qatar slated to join, expanding coverage toward all six GCC states <sup>[3][3]</sup>. The system continues to operate the wholesale interbank cross-currency service; published per-corridor volume figures were not available in the central-bank sources reviewed.

## Sources

[1]: https://www.cbb.gov.bh/media-center/the-central-bank-of-bahrain-introduces-afaq-gcc-rtgs-system/
[2]: https://www.gulf-payments.com/en/gpc_news/facilitating-cross-border-payments-in-gcc/
[3]: https://www.centralbank.ae/en/our-operations/payments-and-settlements/afaq-gcc-rtgs
[4]: https://www.gulf-payments.com/en/our-services/
[5]: https://www.theasianbanker.com/updates-and-articles/cross-border-payments-in-the-middle-east-become-more-inclusive
[6]: https://rulebook.sama.gov.sa/en/operating-rules-cross-currency-payments-using-afaq-service

[1] [The Central Bank of Bahrain introduces AFAQ (GCC RTGS) System](https://www.cbb.gov.bh/media-center/the-central-bank-of-bahrain-introduces-afaq-gcc-rtgs-system/) — Central Bank of Bahrain, 2021
[2] [Gulf Payments Company: Facilitating cross-border payments in GCC](https://www.gulf-payments.com/en/gpc_news/facilitating-cross-border-payments-in-gcc/) — Gulf Payments Company
[3] [AFAQ (GCC RTGS)](https://www.centralbank.ae/en/our-operations/payments-and-settlements/afaq-gcc-rtgs) — Central Bank of the UAE
[4] [AFAQ — Our Services](https://www.gulf-payments.com/en/our-services/) — Gulf Payments Company
[5] [Cross-border payments in the Middle East become more inclusive](https://www.theasianbanker.com/updates-and-articles/cross-border-payments-in-the-middle-east-become-more-inclusive) — The Asian Banker
[6] [Operating Rules for Cross Currency Payments using AFAQ Service](https://rulebook.sama.gov.sa/en/operating-rules-cross-currency-payments-using-afaq-service) — SAMA Rulebook

## Deployments

_No country reports mention this standard by name._

## Regions / aggregations not mapped to a single country

- GCC