Dubai International Financial Centre’s FinTech Hive, whose startups managed to raise over $10 million in funding in 2017, is aiming to introduce more programmes while adding new innovations in the region’s banking sector.
The number of finalists of the 12-week curriculum accelerator programme, which entered its second edition on Tuesday, has doubled to 22. Fintech refers to technology that helps businesses in the financial sector.
"They [start-ups] came to this programme, proved their credibility and commitment towards the FinTech and the end-result was really good - they were able to raise the necessary capital," Raja Mazrouei, executive vice president of FinTech Hive at DIFC, told The National on Tuesday.
“We are looking forward to have at least two programmes from next year – one will focus on mid-growth stage companies and the other will look at earlier (growth) stage companies.”
Gulf financial centres in Dubai, Abu Dhabi as well as Bahrain have launched several FinTech programmes to attract venture capital funding and drive innovation into their economies. In June, DIFC partnered with UK-based Startupbootcamp for the development of a FinTech venture capital ecosystem in the region.
FinTech Hive was launched last year in partnership with Accenture, the New York-listed technology firm, and is one of the first and largest FinTech accelerators in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia region. It is now looking forward to grow by having more partner institutions.
Besides leading banks such as Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank, Emirates NBD, First Abu Dhabi Bank, Riyad Bank and Standard Chartered, venture capital firms like Beco Capital and MEVP are also partners in this initiative.
“Our funding partners know start-ups’ exact capital needs and they are willing to discuss how they can support and engage with them,” said Ms Mazrouei.
__________
Read more:
[ DIFC partners with UK's Startupbootcamp on FinTech ]
[ Dubai’s DFSA signs FinTech deal with Singapore regulator ]
__________
“Our aim is to bring more technologies to this region. The excitement confirms that the region has the right FinTech ecosystem that is required to support the growth."
As part of this programme, the selected finalists will work closely with financial institutions and other stakeholders to create innovative and forward-looking solutions that aim to address the evolving needs of the region’s financial services industry.
The pool of selected start-ups, who come from different countries including the UAE, Bahrain, Kuwait, Jordan, Nigeria and the US, covers FinTech, InsurTech (which refers to insurance technology), RegTech (which refers to regulatory technology) and Islamic FinTech sectors (which refers Sharia-compliant financial technology).
Ms Mazrouei said that the adoption rate of FinTech in regional banks is higher than expected. Last year FinTech Hive worked with 11 financial institutions and this year they are working with 21 partners.
The second edition has also expanded its scope beyond Fintech to include Insurtech, RegTech and Islamic Fintech.
Out of last year’s 11 finalists, six have also setup their offices in Dubai.
Company profile
Company name: Fasset
Started: 2019
Founders: Mohammad Raafi Hossain, Daniel Ahmed
Based: Dubai
Sector: FinTech
Initial investment: $2.45 million
Current number of staff: 86
Investment stage: Pre-series B
Investors: Investcorp, Liberty City Ventures, Fatima Gobi Ventures, Primal Capital, Wealthwell Ventures, FHS Capital, VN2 Capital, local family offices
Points classification after Stage 4
1. Arnaud Demare (France / FDJ) 124
2. Marcel Kittel (Germany / Quick-Step) 81
3. Michael Matthews (Australia / Sunweb) 66
4. Andre Greipel (Germany / Lotto) 63
5. Alexander Kristoff (Norway / Katusha) 43
The struggle is on for active managers
David Einhorn closed out 2018 with his biggest annual loss ever for the 22-year-old Greenlight Capital.
The firm’s main hedge fund fell 9 per cent in December, extending this year’s decline to 34 percent, according to an investor update viewed by Bloomberg.
Greenlight posted some of the industry’s best returns in its early years, but has stumbled since losing more than 20 per cent in 2015.
Other value-investing managers have also struggled, as a decade of historically low interest rates and the rise of passive investing and quant trading pushed growth stocks past their inexpensive brethren. Three Bays Capital and SPO Partners & Co., which sought to make wagers on undervalued stocks, closed in 2018. Mr Einhorn has repeatedly expressed his frustration with the poor performance this year, while remaining steadfast in his commitment to value investing.
Greenlight, which posted gains only in May and October, underperformed both the broader market and its peers in 2018. The S&P 500 Index dropped 4.4 per cent, including dividends, while the HFRX Global Hedge Fund Index, an early indicator of industry performance, fell 7 per cent through December. 28.
At the start of the year, Greenlight managed $6.3 billion in assets, according to a regulatory filing. By May, the firm was down to $5.5bn.
A general guide to how active you are:
Less than 5,000 steps - sedentary
5,000 - 9,999 steps - lightly active
10,000 - 12,500 steps - active
12,500+ - highly active
RESULT
Leeds United 1 Manchester City 1
Leeds: Rodrigo (59')
Man City: Sterling (17')
Man of the Match: Rodrigo Moreno (Leeds)
The figures behind the event
1) More than 300 in-house cleaning crew
2) 165 staff assigned to sanitise public areas throughout the show
3) 1,000+ social distancing stickers
4) 809 hand sanitiser dispensers placed throughout the venue
Company Profile
Company name: Namara
Started: June 2022
Founder: Mohammed Alnamara
Based: Dubai
Sector: Microfinance
Current number of staff: 16
Investment stage: Series A
Investors: Family offices
The National Archives, Abu Dhabi
Founded over 50 years ago, the National Archives collects valuable historical material relating to the UAE, and is the oldest and richest archive relating to the Arabian Gulf.
Much of the material can be viewed on line at the Arabian Gulf Digital Archive - https://www.agda.ae/en
You Were Never Really Here
Director: Lynne Ramsay
Starring: Joaquim Phoenix, Ekaterina Samsonov
Four stars
Hotel Data Cloud profile
Date started: June 2016
Founders: Gregor Amon and Kevin Czok
Based: Dubai
Sector: Travel Tech
Size: 10 employees
Funding: $350,000 (Dh1.3 million)
Investors: five angel investors (undisclosed except for Amar Shubar)
The biog
Favourite book: Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi
Favourite holiday destination: Spain
Favourite film: Bohemian Rhapsody
Favourite place to visit in the UAE: The beach or Satwa
Children: Stepdaughter Tyler 27, daughter Quito 22 and son Dali 19
Three ways to limit your social media use
Clinical psychologist, Dr Saliha Afridi at The Lighthouse Arabia suggests three easy things you can do every day to cut back on the time you spend online.
1. Put the social media app in a folder on the second or third screen of your phone so it has to remain a conscious decision to open, rather than something your fingers gravitate towards without consideration.
2. Schedule a time to use social media instead of consistently throughout the day. I recommend setting aside certain times of the day or week when you upload pictures or share information.
3. Take a mental snapshot rather than a photo on your phone. Instead of sharing it with your social world, try to absorb the moment, connect with your feeling, experience the moment with all five of your senses. You will have a memory of that moment more vividly and for far longer than if you take a picture of it.
TWISTERS
Director:+Lee+Isaac+Chung
Starring:+Glen+Powell,+Daisy+Edgar-Jones,+Anthony+Ramos
Rating:+2.5/5
What is dialysis?
Dialysis is a way of cleaning your blood when your kidneys fail and can no longer do the job.
It gets rid of your body's wastes, extra salt and water, and helps to control your blood pressure. The main cause of kidney failure is diabetes and hypertension.
There are two kinds of dialysis — haemodialysis and peritoneal.
In haemodialysis, blood is pumped out of your body to an artificial kidney machine that filter your blood and returns it to your body by tubes.
In peritoneal dialysis, the inside lining of your own belly acts as a natural filter. Wastes are taken out by means of a cleansing fluid which is washed in and out of your belly in cycles.
It isn’t an option for everyone but if eligible, can be done at home by the patient or caregiver. This, as opposed to home haemodialysis, is covered by insurance in the UAE.
8 traditional Jamaican dishes to try at Kingston 21
- Trench Town Rock: Jamaican-style curry goat served in a pastry basket with a carrot and potato garnish
- Rock Steady Jerk Chicken: chicken marinated for 24 hours and slow-cooked on the grill
- Mento Oxtail: flavoured oxtail stewed for five hours with herbs
- Ackee and salt fish: the national dish of Jamaica makes for a hearty breakfast
- Jamaican porridge: another breakfast favourite, can be made with peanut, cornmeal, banana and plantain
- Jamaican beef patty: a pastry with ground beef filling
- Hellshire Pon di Beach: Fresh fish with pickles
- Out of Many: traditional sweet potato pudding
Tips for job-seekers
- Do not submit your application through the Easy Apply button on LinkedIn. Employers receive between 600 and 800 replies for each job advert on the platform. If you are the right fit for a job, connect to a relevant person in the company on LinkedIn and send them a direct message.
- Make sure you are an exact fit for the job advertised. If you are an HR manager with five years’ experience in retail and the job requires a similar candidate with five years’ experience in consumer, you should apply. But if you have no experience in HR, do not apply for the job.
David Mackenzie, founder of recruitment agency Mackenzie Jones Middle East
Indika
Developer: 11 Bit Studios
Publisher: Odd Meter
Console: PlayStation 5, PC and Xbox series X/S
Rating: 4/5
