The Governor of Qatar Central Bank (QCB), Sheikh Abdulla Bin Saud Al-Thani revealed at the Euromoney Qatar Conference 2019 that the central bank is preparing to announce its fintech strategy which will be part of the Qatar National Vision 2030 framework.

The QCB Governor explained that the global financial sector is rapidly developing, supported by electronic innovations and systems, where the provision of financial services has become mainly dependent on technology, because of its great role in transforming the banking sector from its conventional channels to digital alternatives in banking.

The governor stressed that the regulatory and supervisory bodies around the world need to quickly cope up with the new challenges in order to reduce regulatory gaps and maintain financial stability, in light of recent developments in the financial and banking sector, pointing out that on top of those developments is the issue of fintech, where the restrictions imposed on obtaining financing and the high cost of banking transactions were the most important major obstacles facing traditional banking services, and to overcome these obstacles, technology companies have developed faster and lower-cost solutions and have begun to offer alternative financial services.

Preparations are underway to launch digital banks, or what is known as new banks, which provide banking services through mobile applications and others, he added.

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