Over 22,000 New Bahraini-Owned Businesses Registered

TDT | Manama

Email: mail@newsofbahrain.com

Bahrainis owned 22,568 of the new commercial registrations issued between January 2023 and December 2025, while fully expat-owned businesses accounted for 19,057, Industry and Commerce Ministry figures show.

In a written answer to MP Basema Mubarak, the ministry stated it issued 55,004 new registrations against 26,227 cancellations over the three years. Gulf nationals accounted for another 1,843 new registrations, while partnerships accounted for 11,536.

Among the cancelled registrations, Bahraini-owned businesses made up 77pc of the total. Fully expatriate-owned businesses accounted for 9pc, Gulf-owned registrations for 3%, and partnerships for 11%. The ministry stated the main reasons for cancellation included owners requesting to ‘cancel, merge or liquidate’ a registration, along with ‘bankruptcy or insolvency’.

It also cited changes in the commercial market, legal restrictions on trading, taking a job, selling or giving up the business, leaving the country, and the death of the owner.

New registrations for Bahrainis and expats were spread across ten main fields, led by management consultancy and management work. General trading followed, then food and drink services and interior decoration.

Other common fields included integrated facilities work, excluding guarding and security, cargo handling, marketing and promotion, advertising, real estate work involving owned or leased property, and building construction.