Following The Treasurer’s news last month that the United Arab Emirates (UAE) will nurture its own fintech hub through a special Regulatory Laboratory – or ‘RegLab’ – scheme, the initiative’s first two strategic partners have been unveiled.
On 30 May, leading UAE financial centre Abu Dhabi Global Market (-M) announced that it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with local start-up accelerator Flat6Labs, which will help towards one of RegLab’s key goals: cultivating a regional climate of innovation.
RegLab will be managed and coordinated by ADGM’s watchdog division the Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA). Under the arrangement, FSRA officials will work alongside fintech experts at Flat6Labs to create and grow a thriving ecosystem in the sector that will supply RegLab with a series of projects to oversee.
Once those projects are ready to test, RegLab will trial and monitor their product and service innovations within safe parameters, to ensure they will not affect the broader financial markets at such an early stage of development.
RegLab will also advise the entities behind those projects on how to ensure their offerings comply with the relevant regulations.
Flat6Labs managing director Victor Kiriakos said: “Part of our mission is to accelerate entrepreneurship in the MENA region, and to successfully execute this, we require a collaborative mindset. We are very glad to have found in ADGM a partner that values collaboration.”
FSRA chief executive Richard Teng said: “As an Abu Dhabi-based establishment, Flat6Labs is well recognised as a successful, committed and experienced technology accelerator in the region.
“More importantly, Flat6Labs shares our desire in fostering a vibrant entrepreneurial environment to support the growth of fintech in the region. We look forward to launching new initiatives with Flat6Labs in the near future.”
One week on from news of that memorandum of understanding, it emerged that the Abu Dhabi branch of New York University (NYUAD) has also come onboard to assist RegLab. Again with a view to spurring innovation, the FSRA will provide the university’s IDEA Lab – a regional community of entrepreneurs – with knowledge and expertise on how best to navigate the UAE’s commercial and regulatory pathways.
In return, NYUAD will offer technical training and skills-development courses to RegLab stakeholders, and help ADGM design some of the engagement activities it will run to get the fintech message out to the wider region.
NYUAD vice provost for entrepreneurship and innovation Ramesh Jagannathan said that his institute “is committed to developing a globally competitive innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem in Abu Dhabi”.
He added: “The mission of NYUAD IDEA Lab – an entrepreneurship platform focused on democratising innovations and accelerating start-ups – is vastly strengthened by ADGM’s innovative RegLab framework. Working together, we will develop fintech strategies, programmes and initiatives that will jumpstart fintech start-ups in the region.”
Teng said: “We are glad to welcome NYUAD as one of our key fintech partners… NYUAD [is] keen to develop globally recognised and locally tailored programmes and initiatives that will support the fintech community and its participants.”