MANAMA: Governors of six Central Banks across the Arab region were among the regulators who joined the banking industry leadership in Bahrain to discuss the trends, opportunities and challenges in upcoming new era of financial services in MENA region.
The 3rd Middle East and Africa Fintech Forum 2019, which attracted 600 delegates from across the region, concluded in Manama, Bahrain, on a positive note with discussions for this year’s Forum signaling towards an important shift in the approach taken by bankers and regulators across the Middle East and North Africa.
In the backdrop of the rapidly changing scenario in the banking and financial sector globally fueled by the evolving technologies and opening up of new era of development for the banks by switching to clouds and blockchain solutions brought vibrant discussions during various sessions at the Forum on Thursday at the Ritz Carlton Hotel, Manama.
“The region as a whole has one of the lowest rates of bank account penetration in the world, but in recent years regulators from several countries have been making efforts to address this looking at new technologies and approaches. Many Arab countries are also looking for ways to diversify their economies and bolster economic growth in the face of sluggish oil prices,” the speakers stressed.
The 2019 FinTech Forum drew an historic number of banking executives and senior regulators from over half a dozen countries and large participation of private sector including the start-ups. They audience witnessed presentations from a range of speakers on the latest developments in financial technology, financial inclusion, open data in finance, and artificial intelligence. Speakers included best-selling authors Brett King (author of Bank 4.0) and Dr Pippa Malmgren (author of The Leadership Lab), as well as Anthony Thomson (founder of Metro Bank, UK) Alastair Lukies CBE (UK Prime Minister’s Business Ambassador for FinTech), His Excellency Rasheed Mohammed Al Maraj (Governor, Central Bank of Bahrain), Sael Al Waary (Deputy Group CEO, Bank ABC & Chairman, Arab Financial Services), celebrity robot Sophia, and Dr David Hanson (Founder of Hanson Robotics and creator of Sophia the robot), amongst others.
Rasheed Al Maraj, Governor of the Central Bank of Bahrain, who took keen interest in the coinciding Fintech exhibition, said that there was no place complacent attitude towards change while the global trends are shaping up a total new look for the financial industry to cope with the challenges and opportunities in the new high-tech era.
“We have hosted this conference before, but the explosion in attendance amongst bankers and regulators this year really shows that we are on the edge of a fundamental change in the regional financial sector,” Sael Al Waary, Deputy Group CEO of Bank ABC, said.
“Factors like advancements in technology and greater mobile penetration are making it possible to talk practically about things that would have been impossible before. Certainly, we can only make the difference if there is an appetite for change, but based on what I have heard is definitely there as well. It’s a very exciting time to be a banker,” he added.
The Middle East and Africa Fintech Forum has been held annually in Manama, Bahrain since 2017. The event is held under the patronage of the Central Bank of Bahrain and hosted by Bank ABC and Arab Financial Services. The 2019 event was attended by over 500 delegates and, in addition to the main conference hall, featured an exhibition area showcasing the latest in financial technology.