Qatar FinTech Hub (QFTH) has announced that demo day for the first wave of its incubator and accelerator programmes will take place virtually on the 18th of January, 2021. The initiative is supported by Qatar Development Bank (QDB), Qatar Financial Centre (QFC) and Qatar Central Bank (QCB).
It will be one of the biggest fintech events in the region and is set to be a platform for the key players in the financial services ecosystem as well as start-ups and scale-ups, investors, partners, sponsors, advisors, consultants and enthusiasts.
The first wave of the QFTH’s programmes focused on the payments sector and attracted more than 750 applications from 72 countries.
Building on the success of the first wave, the second wave is targeting financial technology (fintech) start-ups and scale-ups searching for a launchpad to accelerate their growth in the country and the region.
The programmes are scheduled to start in March 2021 with the aim and intention to attract fintech start-ups and scale-ups in more sectors including Islamic fintech, insurance technology, cybersecurity and regulatory technology, which is very important for regulators, controllers and banks, specifically related to the prevention of white-collar crimes, and more explicitly concerning Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and ‘Know Your Customer’ (KYC) protocols.
The financial sector has witnessed an increase in cybersecurity attacks which have been evolving and are becoming ever more sophisticated. The partnerships between fintech start-ups and scale-ups and the key stakeholders in the financial sector will help to mitigate the risks from fraudulent activities in the sector.
The pandemic has raised the profile of fintech as people realise the simplicity of completing transactions without cash and ordering through e-commerce.
QFTH aims and intends to contribute to the digital transformation of the financial sector, to develop the fintech industry in the State of Qatar and to make the country an international hub for fintech in line with the Qatar National Vision 2030.
QFTH collaborates and cooperates with strategic partners in the fintech ecosystem including financial institutions, technology providers, ecosystem builders, colleges and universities, regulators and many others.
Please click on the link and reach out to learn more about the Qatar FinTech Hub, Qatar’s FinTech Strategy and the policies of the Qatar Central Bank as well as Business Start Up Qatar.