The hidden currents of marine economies: assessing informal market behavior across fisheries, tourism, and logistics in Saudi Arabia’s Eastern Province

Introduction The Blue Bioeconomy is widely recognized as a driver of sustainable coastal development; however, its hidden dimensions, particularly informal market behavior, unreported transactions, and financial leakage, remain significantly understudied in rapidly evolving marine economies. Existing research has largely emphasized environmental sustainability and sectoral growth, with limited empirical attention to financial opacity and informal economic practices across Blue Bioeconomy sectors in the Gulf and Saudi Arabian context. This study addresses this gap by examining stakeholder perceptions of hidden economic dynamics within Saudi Arabia’s Eastern Province. Methods A mixed-methods research design was employed, drawing on data collected from 404 stakeholders representing government agencies, private industry, academia, non-governmental organizations, and coastal communities. The analysis focused on fisheries, marine tourism, and maritime logistics, with aquaculture examined as a complementary sector. Quantitative methods included descriptive statistics, reliability testing, exploratory factor analysis, and multiple linear regression to identify predictors of perceived financial leakage. Qualitative data from open-ended survey responses were analyzed using thematic coding. Results The findings indicate widespread concern regarding weak regulatory enforcement, fragmented institutional mandates, limited data transparency, and persistent informal transactions within high-value coastal sectors, particularly fisheries and tourism. Exploratory factor analysis identified three latent dimensions, Institutional Weakness, Sectoral Economic Pressure, and Transparency Culture, that shape vulnerability to financial leakage. Regression results show that institutional weakness and economic pressure are the strongest predictors of perceived underreporting. Qualitative insights further reveal gaps in monitoring systems, inconsistent auditing practices, and community-level behaviors that circumvent formal reporting mechanisms. Discussion The results highlight the importance of addressing hidden economic dynamics to advance a transparent, innovation-driven Blue Bioeconomy aligned with Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030. Strengthening regulatory enforcement, improving financial transparency, and enhancing institutional coordination are critical to reducing financial leakage. Policy implications include the adoption of digital reporting systems, reinforced auditing mechanisms, improved inter-agency coordination, and the integration of community-based monitoring frameworks. This study contributes novel empirical and theoretical insights into the intersection of marine governance, financial transparency, and informal economic behavior in emerging coastal economies.