The banker customer confidential relationship

Abstract

Conscious of the limitations of the petroleum-based economy in Bahrain, the Bahraini government aims to improve other industries, such as finance. Therefore, the aim of this thesis is to study the current status of banking confidentiality in Bahrain, and to discover the possibilities for improvement in the banking sector in Bahrain, so that the country can succeed in being the financial centre of the Middle East. The main aspects of this study are to explore the meaning of the doctrine of confidentiality; the duration of and the exceptions to the duty of confidentiality, and the delicate balance between protecting banking confidentiality and combating money-laundering. This thesis is based on library research, involving an analysis of a range of documents, publications, cases, articles, online sources and legal materials from the United Kingdom (UK) and Bahraini jurisdictions and legislations, both in Arabic and English. The findings are as follows: surprisingly, compared to English law, the exceptions to the duty of confidentiality under Bahraini law are much more limited. They are clearly stated under the CBBFIA. Although the CBBFIA designates four articles that deal with the duty of confidentiality, it lacks specific and important details related to the application of these articles, such as the scope and duration of the duty of confidentiality. Bahraini courts have failed to apply any article for the protection of banking confidentiality, and the court records lack any cases relating to the protection of banking confidentiality. Also a significant number of money- laundering transactions could be performed through banks. Finally, bank customers in Bahrain have little awareness of their rights in the framework of banker-customer confidentiality.