A wide-ranging, global report from Deloitte has recognised Abu Dhabi as the top fintech hub in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region.
Published on 10 April in partnership with trade association Innovate Finance – and its recently launched affiliate the Global Fintech Hubs Federation – A tale of 44 cities evaluates measures to support fintech in a variety of leading urban centres.
In its assessment of the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) financial hotspot, the report hailed its test bed for fintech start-ups – the region’s only live, regulatory regime for the fast-growing sector – as a “milestone success”.
It also credited ADGM with spurring innovation strategies at banks, and encouraging those traditional institutions to collaborate with start-ups.
Richard Teng – CEO of ADGM’s Financial Services Regulatory Authority – said: “This recognition is a strong endorsement of the initiatives and efforts that we have introduced to develop both the regulatory framework and ecosystem needed to support the ambition of fintech stakeholders.”
Teng noted that ADGM has created a series of fintech firsts in the MENA region, such as:
Teng hailed the “strategic support of our government, Memorandum of Understanding partners and the [business] community” as “instrumental to the advancement of fintech growth and activities in Abu Dhabi and the UAE”.
He added: “As an international financial centre, ADGM will continuously enhance its business environment and fintech ecosystem to better serve the needs of the MENA region now, and well into the future.
“We will continue to collaborate with fintech stakeholders and local and international industry providers to identify areas of innovation and business opportunities.”
In a foreword to the report, SWIFT Institute global head of securities markets Fabian Vandenreydt and Innovate Finance CEO Lawrence Wintermeyer note that, since the Federation was launched in August last year, they have been “overwhelmed” by the response of fintech stakeholders – particularly their “desire to collaborate and connect with each other” through hubs to “share best practices and knowledge”.
In his own statement, Wintermeyer added: “The report illustrates that fintech is growing in size and influence globally and that ecosystems rich in fintech talent, regulatory support and investment opportunities continue to lead the way.”