The Abu Dhabi Global Market and KPMG have launched the first FinTech Abu Dhabi Innovation Challenge for young entrepreneurs.
The competition is part of the inaugural FinTech Abu Dhabi event in October. The selected ten startups will take part in a five-week workshop. They will have the chance to develop unique solutions to industry problems in six fields, including investment and financial management, trade finances, private capital markets, and more. The participants will present their findings in front of a panel of industry experts at the FinTech Demo Day on October 22.
The entrants will also take part in numerous mentoring sessions to receive guidance from experts and representatives of the regulatory authorities. The most promising participants will be granted a fast-tracked entry into the ADGM’s Regulatory Laboratory accelerator program. The young entrepreneurs will receive a stipend of USD 15,000 to cover travel and accommodation costs. Two winners will have the chance to visit the Singapore Hackcelerator event.
Wai Lum Kwok, executive director (Capital Markets), Financial Services Regulatory Authority of ADGM, commented:
This is a great opportunity for FinTech startups to interact with the brightest minds in the industry to leverage the guidance and mentorship of industry experts to come up with solutions to address and solve some of the sector’s challenges and pain-points.
The application process is now open. The interested parties may subscribe until August 25.
Abu Dhabi is one of the regional cities with ambitions to turn into the Gulf’s FinTech hub. Bahrain and Dubai have already established a new legal framework to grant FinTech companies more flexibility in testing and experimenting.
Earlier this year, the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) also launched an accelerator program for FinTech startups along with Accenture.