Central Bank of Kuwait reports significant drop in returned checks due to insufficient funds

• The value of bounced checks in Kuwait decreased by 21.25% in the first half of 2024 compared to the same period in 2023.

• The number of issued checks dropped from 2.191 million to 2.142 million, and their total value decreased from KD 13.212 billion to KD 12.512 billion.

•The number of bank accounts closed due to bounced checks slightly declined from 330 to 323.

Kuwait has experienced a notable decrease in the value of bounced checks during the first half of 2024.

According to figures released by the Central Bank of Kuwait, the total value of returned checks due to insufficient funds plummeted by 21.25% compared to the same period in the previous year.

A closer examination of the data reveals that the number of bounced checks decreased from 2,070 issued by 1,387 customers with a total value of KD 24 million in the first half of 2023 to 2,082 issued by 1,399 customers worth KD 18.9 million in the corresponding period of 2024.

Furthermore, there was a 5.3% reduction in the overall value of issued checks, according to reports by Al-Rai newspaper.

The number of issued checks dropped from 2.191 million by 51,995 customers with a total value of KD 13.212 billion in the first half of 2023 to 2.142 million by 52,484 customers worth KD 12.512 billion in the first half of 2024.

The number of bank accounts closed due to bounced checks also showed a slight decline. In the first half of 2023, 330 accounts belonging to 312 customers who issued 979 bounced checks worth KD 8.6 million were closed.

This figure decreased to 323 accounts belonging to 311 customers who issued 977 bounced checks worth KD 8.4 million in the first half of 2024.