Doha, November 08 (QNA) - Under the patronage of HE Minister of Justice and Minister of State for Cabinet Affairs, Ibrahim bin Ali bin Issa Al Hassan Al Mohannadi, the Ministry of Justice (MOJ) convened Sunday its inaugural banking sector forum in the State of Qatar, under the motto of a shared vision for enhancing service efficiency.

The forum came as part of the collaboration between MOJ and the banking sector to discuss opportunities to develop procedures and services, substantially foster institutional integration and improve the efficiency of services provided, with the participation of representatives from a host of banks and banking enterprises operating in the State of Qatar.

The forum, attended by Assistant Undersecretary of MOJ for Real Estate Registration and Notarization Affairs, Amer Saeed Al Ghafri, and Assistant Undersecretary of MOJ for Legal Affairs, Ali Mohammed Al Yafie, featured a review of a raft of topics pertinent to the mandates of the Real Estate Registration and Notarization Sector and the Experts Department.

The discussions were intended to bolster direct communication channels with banking institutions, delve into practical challenges, and exchange expertise and proposals to develop and streamline procedures.

The Real Estate Registration and Notarization Sector weighed in on the key legislation governing real estate registration and notarization, as well as the Ministry's efforts in digital transformation and expanding the provision of electronic services.

The gathering examined opportunities for electronic integration and interoperability with the banking sector, the possibility of establishing direct links between systems, and the provision of secure channels for sharing real estate data and information, thereby significantly enhancing their reliability and supporting more efficient credit decision-making.

The forum addressed a flurry of issues of mutual interest, including ways to develop mortgage registration procedures, rights-assignment transactions and the challenges associated with them, financing mechanisms secured by future receivables from real estate projects, and procedures governing the transfer of rights, mortgages and security interests following the issuance of title deeds. The discussions also covered digital services and electronic notarization and signature procedures.

Opening the forum, Al Ghafri welcomed the participants, noting that the event demonstrates MOJ’s commitment to strengthening cooperation with multiple sectors and drawing on their expertise to develop the administration of justice and substantially improve its quality.

Al Ghafri assured participants that the forum would provide an opportunity to discuss challenges associated with procedures and services shared by the Ministry and the banking sector, exchange expertise on these issues, and identify opportunities for further development, particularly in streamlining requirements and strengthening digital integration between the Ministry and banking institutions.

He emphasized that the effectiveness of this cooperation hinges on clear procedures and complementary institutional roles, adding that data and information interchange must scrupulously observe applicable regulations and take into account governance requirements, data confidentiality and information security. Such measures, he said, would strengthen service reliability and accelerate transaction processing.

In addition, Al Ghafri hoped that the forum's discussions would help identify cooperation priorities and formulate practical proposals that are actionable and can be followed up on, paving the way for consideration of joint initiatives that could address challenges and improve the customer experience.

During the forum, Director of the Documentation Department, Areej Mohsen Al Shammari, delivered a presentation outlining the forum's objectives and reviewing the legislation currently in force in the Real Estate Registration and Notarization Sector, as well as digital transformation and electronic services designed to strengthen integration with the banking sector.

These included examining the possibility of establishing direct electronic links between banks' systems and the Real Estate Registration Sector, providing secure electronic channels for data exchange, and reducing reliance on paper-based documents. Such channels would cover electronic applications, identity verification, electronic signatures and the expansion of smart services.

These services would also support credit decision-making by providing immediate access to real estate information, enabling decisions to be made with a high degree of efficiency.

During the presentation, she noted that services for the banking sector would become fully electronic as of January 2027, when the Ministry would stop accepting paper-based applications.

The presentation also reviewed the real estate registration and notarization services provided to the banking sector.

These include property mortgage registration and mortgage releases, sales transactions, corrections to property owners' names and property types, ownership disclosures, and the issuance of title deeds, including replacement deeds for lost or damaged originals. Other services include debt assignments, account pledges, pledges of securities shares and shares in joint-stock companies, declarations of share pledges, and assignments of rights.

The forum also drilled down on challenges associated with mortgage registration procedures, including the need to complete mortgage registration and release procedures entirely online, without requiring applicants to appear in person, and to strengthen integration among relevant entities to ensure that transactions are processed promptly.

Regarding real estate financing procedures, the forum went over banks' needs in connection with major real estate projects, including enabling them to verify a property's status and any registered encumbrances before granting financing, while substantially improving the accuracy and reliability of the real estate data available to them.

The presentation also highlighted key indicators relating to electronic services provided to banks, noting that 375 electronic transactions had been completed on their behalf during the final quarter of 2026.

For its part, the Experts Department reviewed its efforts to develop the expert profession and enhance the quality of technical reports in banking disputes. These efforts involve addressing challenges related to understanding banking transactions, ensuring the accuracy of financial calculations, and providing sound technical reasoning for findings, thereby improving the quality of expert work, contributing to the administration of justice and safeguarding litigants' rights.

The department also spotlighted the importance of drawing on specialized banking-sector expertise by encouraging professionals to register on the roster of experts and engaging them in highly technical matters.

It also emphasized strengthening the exchange of expertise and knowledge with the Ministry, while underscoring the need to preserve experts' independence and impartiality and avoid conflicts of interest. These measures would contribute to more accurate and efficient technical reports and help judicial authorities adjudicate banking-related disputes.

Participants also went over areas of cooperation between the Experts Department and the banking sector, including the quality of technical reports, the role of banking experts in litigation, procedures for appointing banking, accounting and financial experts, and areas in which banking expertise could be tapped. These include anti-money laundering, payment cards and electronic transactions, letters of credit and guarantees.

Following the presentations, the forum debated participants' recommendations and observations on improving work procedures, legislative proposals aimed at improving services in the Real Estate Registration and Notarization Sector, and cooperation on banking experts in the State of Qatar, primarily to serve the banking sector.

The forum was organized as part of MOJ’s commitment to further deepening its institutional partnership with the banking sector, bolstering the exchange of expertise and developing mechanisms for joint action.

These efforts are intended to keep up with digital transformation requirements, substantially enhance service efficiency, and support Qatar's business and investment environment, in line with the objectives of Qatar National Vision 2030. (QNA)