The Private forums day of the Fintech Abu Dhabi Festival 2021, hosted by Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) and held under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Hazza bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Vice Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Executive Council, saw key local and international decision makers and industry leaders come together to discuss the regional investment opportunities present in the area of Fintech and to meet 100 international fast-growth start-up founders from 35 different countries. Start-ups attending have an estimated average market capitalisation of over USD 70 million, making this the strongest gathering of start ups shaping the future of financial services.
Powered by Mubadala and Invest in Malta, this year’s Investor Forum discussed trends shaping the Fintech investment space, including Abu Dhabi’s Fintech-enabling ecosystem and the digital future of funds and asset management and wider fintech breakthrough has just begun.
Leading the sessions during the Investor Forum included Brady Dougan, Founder and CEO of Exos and former Group CEO of Credit Suisse. Brady shared his entrepreneurial experience and offered his view on the imperative of fintech adoption to advance the financial services landscape. He shared his vision for growth for digital investment banking, an area that has often been overlook in favour of digital retail banking, and the market opportunity that he sees in this speher.
Other contributors included H.E. Rashid Abul Karim Al Blooshi, Undersecretary of the Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development, Hon. Silvio Schembri, Minister of Economy for the Government of Malta, and James Munce, CEO of Abu Dhabi Catalyst Partners, among others.
In a key announcement, the ADGM Financial Services Regulatory Authority launched an industry consultation on a proposed framework to broaden investor participation in private capital markets, in support of start-ups and private enterprises seeking funding.
The private first day of the Festival’s fifth edition also hosted the Fintech100, comprising some of the world’s most innovative Fintechs scouted by ADGM across several global markets to showcase their solutions to potential investors in Abu Dhabi. Of the 100 Fintechs featured, four of such participants are unicorns, including Stripe, Flutterwave, Judo Bank, and Zeta, as well as five soonicorns, including Thetaray, Securrency, Bux, Stashaway, and Tamara.
Leading the Fintech100 and Investor Forum sessions included Kevin O’Leary, entrepreneur, Venture Capitalist and star of four-time Emmy award-winning television show Shark Tank., Seqouia Capital, Antler, 500 Global, Mubadala, Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, Blackrock, Mohamed Okasha, Co-founder of Fawry and Managing Partner at Disruptech, Jason Barsema, President and Co-founder of Halo Investing, Yousif Al Mulla, CEO of E11 Capital, Sonia Gokhale, Managing Partner at VentureSouq, Mahmoud Adi, Founding Partner of Sharooq VC and Basil Moftah, Managing Partner of Global Ventures.
Day two of the Fintech Abu Dhabi Festival 2021 will host several longstanding and newfound agenda items led by a stellar line-up of speakers, including the Government Fintech Forum, a series of panels among global and regional policymakers and financial regulators to discuss key policy issues on disruptive technologies. Other forums on the 23rd include CxO21, a digital banking innovation summit that delves into the world of corporate innovation and digital banking, and Token, comprising key discussions focusing on the fast-evolving world of digital assets and currencies.
