Middle East & Africa FinTech Forum to Be Held This March in Manama

Press release

Published January 14th, 2018 - 10:54 GMT

Mr. Sael Al Waary, Chairman of AFS and Deputy Group CEO of Bank ABC

The second Middle East & Africa Fintech Forum will be held in Manama, Bahrain, on 7-8 March 2018, under the theme Beyond Disruption.

The forum will be opened by H.E. Rasheed Mohammed Al Maraj, Governor of the Central Bank of Bahrain. The event will be held under the patronage of the Central Bank of Bahrain and hosted by Bank ABC and Arab Financial Services (AFS).

Beyond Disruption brings together leading and well regarded global experts and industry leaders in a highly engaging format of talks and discussions addressing the most pressing issues in the fast evolving FinTech landscape.

The conference will tackle the biggest disruptors for banks in the near future. From the emergence of challenger banks to the cutting-edge advances in Artificial Intelligence to the rise of cryptocurrencies and the drive for greater financial inclusion across the globe. Keynote speakers include Anthony Thomson, founder of the first UK digital bank, Atom Bank and the award winning Metro Bank, and Gregg Cross, Chief Business Officer at Soul Machines, in addition to industry experts and leading FinTech commentators.

Mr. Sael Al Waary, Chairman of AFS and Deputy Group CEO of Bank ABC, said: “This FinTech Forum goes beyond disruption and helps facilitate the establishment of a cashless society and more sophisticated financial technology services in Bahrain and the region as a whole. AFS, as a key regional payments provider and FinTech enabler, is taking this initiative to ensure that all future prospects of the financial industry vis-a-vis technology are explored.”

Mr. Al Waary added: “The forum is deliberately designed to be highly engaging, with discussions on how FinTech is transforming banking, the move from artificial intelligence to emotional intelligence, the future prospects for the financial industry, and how financial inclusion will transform our world. The world-renowned key speakers addressing the conference demonstrate the significance of the dramatic and transformational change across the financial industry.”

Mr. B. Chandrasekhar, Chief Executive Officer of AFS, sadid: “We’re looking forward to hosting the second edition of this crucial forum. Our intent is to enable leading influencers, innovators and investors to discuss and collaborate on implementing ground-breaking solutions. We are dedicated to serving financial institutions and to help our clients optimise the true potential of FinTech. We envisage this annual Forum to become an integral part in building our FinTech ecosystem across the MENA region.”

The first AFS MENA FinTech Forum, held in March 2017, saw over 350 attendees with notable speakers such as Susanne Chisti, the author of FinTech Circle, and experts from PayTM India, FSS, Visa, McKinsey, IBM and ai Corp.

Background Information

Bank ABC

Bank ABC (incorporated as Arab Banking Corporation B.S.C) is an international bank headquartered in Manama, Kingdom of Bahrain. Our network spreads across five continents, covering countries in the Middle East, North Africa, Europe, the Americas and Asia.

Bank ABC, founded in 1980, is listed on the Bahrain Bourse and our major shareholders are the Central Bank of Libya and Kuwait Investment Authority.

Bank ABC is a leading provider of Trade Finance, Treasury, Project & Structured Finance, Syndications, Corporate & Institutional Banking as well as Islamic Banking services. We are also expanding our retail banking network in the MENA region.

Bank ABC is licensed as a conventional wholesale bank by the Central Bank of Bahrain.