There’s nothing like a good get-together with industry specialists and peers from other organisations to renew your passion for your profession. You can learn about exciting new developments, share best practice, make acquaintances and, of course, enjoy a hearty gossip.
This is exactly why the ACT Middle East (ACTME) runs its highly successful annual conference, now in its third year. More than 300 delegates attended the event, which was held in Dubai in October. Speakers came from a range of organisations, including banks, technology providers, corporates and the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) Authority.
In our conference write-up starting on page 4, we recap the highlights of the conference. It kicked off with an interactive technology workshop that featured a live demonstration of an FX trading platform. An overview of the main trends in treasury followed, along with a lively keynote address from Jeff Singer, the CEO of the DIFC Authority. The rise of the Chinese currency, the renminbi, was eagerly debated and separate track sessions on topics such as cash management and funding were hosted by some of the region’s leading banks.
The winners of the ACTME Deals of the Year Awards were unveiled at a ceremony after the first day of the conference. Find out who they were and see photos of the reception on page 8.
Change is a recurrent theme in the Middle East, largely because of its rapidly developing economies and the constant reshaping of its skylines. And so it is a theme of this issue of the Middle East Treasurer. We examine the latest in banking target market and product innovation on page 10 and find out how automated payment solutions are evolving in the Gulf Cooperation Council on page 12. We also consider the benefits of global cash pooling on page 14.
Enjoy the issue and see you again next time.