Sheikh Maktoum announces the launch of the Dubai FinTech Summit

Maktoum says the summit will help open up new opportunities for both the global FinTech sector and the worldwide financial industry.

Sheikh Maktoum Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance of the UAE, and President of the DIFC, announced on Sunday the launch of the Dubai FinTech Summit, a global event that will bring together more than 5,000 experts, thought leaders, decision-makers and decision-makers in Dubai to discuss how they can shape a new wave of innovation, enterprise and growth for the international financial industry.

To be organized by the Dubai International Financial Center (DIFC), the Dubai FinTech Summit will take place on 8 and 9 May 2023 in Madinat Jumeirah, Dubai. The event will see some of the world’s biggest personalities in the industry deliver keynote presentations, share their perspectives on industry challenges and identify opportunities to maximize the impact of FinTech on people, businesses and economies.

Home to the region’s largest cluster of FinTech and innovation businesses, DIFC is one of the brightest growth spots in the global FinTech market valued at more than $135.9 billion by 2021. The global market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 11.9% between 2022- 2027 to reach a value of over $266.9 billion by 2027.

Sheikh Maktoum said: “The Dubai FinTech Summit reflects the vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates and Ruler of Dubai, to make the emirate a global innovation center and a leader in driving the future of finance .

With FinTech emerging as a positive disruptor to transform the financial landscape, the UAE is capitalizing on the opportunities FinTech brings to reinvent the financial sector.”

“DIFC’s ability to create value for companies in the sector by providing them with a highly productive ecosystem to accelerate growth has led to leading innovators and entrepreneurs in the sector being drawn to the emirate.

“The Dubai FinTech Summit will help open new horizons of opportunity and transformation for both the global FinTech sector and the worldwide financial industry.”

Essa Kazim, Governor of the DIFC, said: “The Dubai FinTech Summit will bring together ideas, knowledge and perspectives that can help unlock a new phase of exponential growth for the global financial sector and FinTech in the global economy. The DIFC will leverage the platform that offered by the summit to bring together banks, FinTechs and regulators from around the world to further stimulate the digital evolution of the financial sector.”

“We already have over 600 FinTech and innovation firms in DIFC changing the face of the industry and contributing to the economic growth of our country. The 23% expansion that DIFC’s FinTech community saw in the first half of this year is testament to the dynamic growth-friendly platform which we offer financial companies from all over the world.

“We remain focused on bringing more exciting players in the sector to Dubai and helping them access opportunities here and across the region.”

The summit is focused on generating concrete results, including reports, strategies and action plans that can help chart the way forward for the financial industry. The event’s program will feature in-depth discussions across key tracks, including the future of FinTech, embedded and open finance, sustainability, Web 3.0 and digital assets. The summit will also provide an opportunity for more than 100 FinTechs and Future of Finance players to showcase their latest technology and innovations.

The Dubai FinTech Summit marks the first time the UAE and Dubai will host a global FinTech event of this scale and size. The event builds on the success of DIFC FinTech Week held in June 2022, where more than 1,500 FinTech innovators, investment firms, banks, decision makers and service providers in the region discussed drivers of growth in financial services. DIFC, the leading global financial services provider. the Middle East, Africa and South Asia (MEASA) centre, has continued to attract exceptional interest from financial technology firms, making FinTech the centre’s fastest growing sector.

Customer growth continues to be strong across all sectors, but interest from FinTechs in the center has surpassed other sectors. This has been further enhanced by DIFC’s strong schedule of impactful events and international roadshows that have demonstrated Dubai’s status as a preferred global FinTech and innovation hub.

A DIFC delegation is currently in Singapore, at the Singapore Fintech Festival, to explore collaboration opportunities and finalize commitments from firms in Asia. As the silver sponsor of the event and the only sponsor from the region, DIFC illustrates its role as the most enabling platform in MEASA for FinTech firms, helping start-ups, global players and unicorns to expand their global reach and capture opportunities in fast-growing MEASA markets . Between January and September 2022, DIFC-based FinTech firms secured over Dhs2 billion in funding.