Future trends in the FinTech industry and the next generation of startups took centre stage as FinTech Abu Dhabi Festival drew to a close today.
Held under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Hazza bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Vice Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Executive Council, FinTech Abu Dhabi attracted 5,000 registrations and brought together world-class business leaders, a blessing of successful unicorns and FinTech innovators.
Start-ups RISQ and Jibrel Network were announced as the two winners of the FinTech Abu Dhabi Innovation Challenge and took home a “Proof of Concepts” grant of up to AED 540,000 each and the opportunity to attend Singapore FinTech Festival in November.
The final day of FinTech Abu Dhabi began with the official ringing of the bell by His Excellency Khalifa Salem Al Mansouri, Acting Chief Executive Officer of ADX, signalling the start of trading at the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange.
China’s Belt and Road Initiative and its impact on the UAE
Dia Haykal, Editor-in-Chief of MiT Technology Review explained at the panel ‘Follow the One Belt Road (BRI): Unpacking the Impact China Will Have On MENA’ how the UAE will benefit from BRI, with trade between the nations reaching US$33 billion in 2018.
The panelists at the session discussed how China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is providing US$8 trillion of infrastructure investment to 65 countries. Richard Teng, CEO ADGM Financial Services Regulatory Authority (UAE), said China’s relationship with the UAE is blossoming.
“The relationship has never been stronger with strategic ties on all levels,”
said Mr Teng.
“UAE is China’s top investment destination in the region with bilateral trade expected to reach US$70 billion.”
Evolving trends in the FinTech ecosystem
Omar Christidis, Founder and CEO of ArabNet, discussed how different regulations and an unwillingness to share client data by banks are among the hurdles facing FinTech firms.
“Talent and upscaling initiatives in Abu Dhabi and Dubai are training the next generation,”
said Mr Christidis.
“However, the sector is held back by different regulations in different countries.
“Entities such as GFIN (Global Financial Innovation Network) are trying to harmonise regulations across countries so FinTechs can move quickly from market to market. Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Bahrain are part of GFIN, which shows how important these markets are.”
Open Banking that allows FinTechs to access a client’s bank details to build services, is another area where companies are facing issues with many banks not sharing key information.
“Bahrain is the only place that has mandated open banking by the banks, but it needs to happen elsewhere.”
Realising the potential of Crypto and digital money
Zeeshan Feroz, CEO of Coinbase UK and Steve Kirsch, CEO of Token, explained why there is a bright future for digital currency.
Speaking in a session moderated by Elizabeth Schulze, Technology Correspondent for CNBC, Zeeshan said:
“We are going through a pioneering shift on what a bank account is. I think in a few years’ time, a crypto account will be the account where your salary will be paid into and spend from. It will do everything that a normal bank account does because crypto is a currency that will have value.”
Addressing the audience during his keynote speech, Steve Kirsch said digital money will totally transform the banking industry in the future. He said:
“I think the way forward, using digital currency is going to be inevitable. This will be a rare opportunity for banks to unite and gain competitive advantage and defend against existential threats.”
Top prizes for innovation
The achievements of 10 aspiring entrepreneurs and professionals for their innovative ideas and initiatives were also recognised during the FinTech Abu Dhabi Awards. Each applicant was judged by an expert panel of global FinTech luminaries on their innovation, impact and influence.
Among those to receive the awards in front of hundreds of delegates was Ambareen Musa. The Founder of Souqalmal won two awards – FinTech Leader and FinTech Woman of the Year.
Ian Dillon, Co-founder at Now Money, was awarded the UAE FinTech Founder accolade, while Invoice Bazaar (MENA FinTech of the Year), Shorooq VC Partners Ltd (FinTech Investors), and Hardik Bhatia, Founder at SolarGridX Ltd (Emerging FinTech Talent) also claimed awards.
Mayasoft LLC (Emerging Markets FinTech), Startupbootcamp Fintech Cairo (Fin Tech Accelerator), Bahrain Fintech Bay (FinTech Corporate Innovation Programme) and Wahed Invest LLC (Islamic Fintech of the Year) were the other winners.
Featured image credit: @FintechAD
