Oman's digital economy at 9% of GDP: where the opportunity is, and how to test it

On 25 October 2026, Oman Observer published a reading of digital investment opportunities in Oman. Its headline figure came from Dr Ali bin Amer al Shidhani, Under-Secretary for Communications and Information Technology at the Ministry of Transport, Communications and Information Technology: the digital economy accounts for 9% of GDP, based on a 2026 survey conducted with the National Centre for Statistics and Information.

What the figures say

E-commerce reached RO 288 million in 2025, up from RO 221 million in 2023. Non-cash transactions grew by more than 700% between 2020 and 2025. Deals and projects announced at COMEX 2025 reached RO 116 million, 45% more than in 2024. Over three years, 200 Omani technology companies exhibited abroad and signed agreements worth RO 30 million, while semiconductor investments reached RO 88 million.

Where demand is heading

The report names specific areas: electronic payment solutions, integrating financial and commercial systems, AI-driven process automation, data analytics, cybersecurity, and technical services for small and medium-sized enterprises. It also lists supporting tools the market needs: cash flow management, data verification, compliance solutions, Arabic document processing, and payment-to-accounting integration. What they share is that they serve existing businesses that want to work faster and cheaper, not consumers looking for another app.

Regulation: sandboxes before full licensing

In October, the Financial Services Authority began testing the Rushd automated investment advisory platform inside its regulatory sandbox, before its licensing requirements are complete. The Central Bank of Oman runs a similar sandbox for financial innovation, including digital payments, open banking and alternative financing. In practice, anyone building in fintech needs to know early which regulator covers their activity, and to plan a testing phase before selling at scale.

How to test your idea before you commit

First, define a real problem for a specific customer: who pays, and how much it costs them today. Second, check local and regional competitors and what they actually deliver. Third, test willingness to pay before building the full product. Fourth, calculate operating costs, including compliance, data protection and hosting. Fifth, identify the regulator for your activity and its requirements. These are the same questions the report raises when it says assessing demand requires reviewing competition, customer needs, operating costs and willingness to pay.

Limits of this reading

The 9% figure describes the size of the digital economy today; it is not a growth forecast. Deals announced at exhibitions may not all become operating projects. And growth across the sector does not prove demand for any specific product. We treat these figures as a signal of where to look, not as evidence that a particular idea will work.

Source: عُمان أوبزرفر (أفراح البلوشية)، نقلاً عن وكيل وزارة النقل والاتصالات وتقنية المعلومات للاتصالات وتقنية المعلومات، ومسح 2026 مع المركز الوطني للإحصاء والمعلومات — 2026-10-25