The Middle East Investment Conference 2017, MEIC, opened today at the Abu Dhabi Global Market building on Al Maryah Island. Hosted by the CFA Society Emirates, the flagship conference brings together international thought leaders, policymakers, industry experts, and key market participants to consider the most pressing issues facing investors in the MENA region.

With repeated success in attracting more than 300 senior investment professionals and featuring a world-class line-up of speakers for 2017, the event offers a unique opportunity to gain first-hand insights from leading investment experts.

Hosted annually by the CFA Institute, the Middle East Investment Conference has previously been held under the patronage of the Central Bank of Bahrain in 2016, Anas K. Al-Saleh, Minister of Finance for the State of Kuwait, in 2015, and H.M. King Abdullah II of Jordan in 2014.

This year's conference is under the patronage of H.H. Sheikh Hamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Chief of the Abu Dhabi Crown Prince's Court Ahmed Al Sayegh, Chairman of ADGM, made the keynote address at the opening of the event, saying that the UAE’s success is underpinned by a number of integrating factors, including political stability, security, advanced infrastructure, and an enabling legislative environment. The UAE, he said, is also a compelling investment destination, proven by the fact that in 2015, the state attracted FDI inflows of 13 billion US Dollars, a 25 percent increase from 2014.

After welcoming the delegates and guests, Al Sayegh expanded on the developments in the region, saying that 2017 had kicked off as another eventful year with a new US President in office, Greece and France back in the limelight, more confident mood driven by evidence of having a balanced approach and strong trade growth in China, and improved firming of commodity prices.

"Despite the heightened uncertainty," he said, "there seems to be an obvious renewed optimism, as seen in the market’s exuberance and performance, in anticipation of the contours of the incoming US Administration’s trade policies and the possible deployment of fiscal policy in advanced economies. So, rather than attempting to provide forecasts, a risky business which I think our speakers today are better at, let’s look at the developments and growth in the Middle East, particularly the UAE."

The ADGM Chairman amplified the UAE's role as a major international trade and finance hub that continues to present investment opportunities in sectors such as infrastructure, finance, aviation, retail, tourism, consumer services and others, and which continues to invest heavily in diversification, local talent, innovation and entrepreneurship initiatives.

"As an enabler of growth, the financial sector is one of the key pillars in facilitating investments in the Abu Dhabi economy. The Financial services sector is not only an engine of growth, it also supports growth more widely among the various sectors of the real economy. It enables efficient allocation of capital, management of risks, it brings about greater innovation to support consumption, production and growth in the real economy, and ultimately, it enables wealth creation."

He said that there is also a great need for financial services in this region due to several factors: the need to diversify from petrochemicals and the demand for financial intermediation to support new developments, the anticipation that strong demographic growth in the region will generate demand for more financial services such as corporate banking, treasury services, foreign exchange and capital markets, and the fact that a greater demand for infrastructure, facilities and financial services will be required to support the needs of the region as a whole.

Al Sayegh explained that the ADGM was established to support the financial stability and long-term economic growth of Abu Dhabi and the UAE. Its role is to identify and cater to the current and future needs of the markets in the region.

"We have set up an open, business-friendly and internationally-regulated ecosystem to assist local institutions to base their activities at home instead of abroad. We enable regional institutions to support and conduct business activities and we also help international institutions to tap into the ADGM platform to centre their outreach strategy and interests in Abu Dhabi to serve the wider region and beyond," he said.

Since becoming fully operational, ADGM has worked closely with local and international stakeholders to understand and further their aspirations and innovation. As an IFC and a regulator, ADGM embraces all aspects of innovation that enable growth and facilitate greater developments.

Speaking on how the ADGM views the future, the Chairman said that they understood the necessity of preparing for the future by strengthening its core and embracing new changes. "We are living in a world where transformational technologies are pushing the boundaries of economic opportunities while challenging current business models. Today the word 'disruption' is mainstream, and we hear it being used across all industries and sectors. All of this will have significant bearing on the scale and nature of jobs in our markets and economies. For instance, FinTech developments such as blockchain, artificial intelligence, biometric applications and virtual currencies, VCs, are expanding the frontier of financial services."

2016 saw more than US$17.6 billion of VC investments in 1,436 global FinTech deals across 66 countries, the impact of which was recognised by the ADGM, whereby in March 2016, it became the first jurisdiction in the region to announce its ambition to be the FinTech hub to support, enable and accelerate FinTech activities and development. ADGM is also working closely with strategic stakeholders and partners to enable the continuous growth and development of not only the FinTech front, but the wider Abu Dhabi financial sector and region.

Al Sayegh went on to say that to plan ahead for the future and to build the economy of tomorrow, "we recognise that both knowledge and a deep pool of highly skilled human capital are essential factors of sustainable production. Knowledge is also proven to be one of the most important pillars in maintaining our country’s and our economy’s competitiveness."

The UAE has always been responsive and committed to new technology, innovation, diversification and education, paired with becoming a knowledge economy, and the chairman acknowledged the need for the ADGM to keep up by doing its part as an IFC to provide an inclusive environment that incubates and generates knowledge, innovation and high standards that will empower the financial services and other key sectors to be competitive and responsive in all circumstances. To achieve this, he said, they are working closely with key industry and academic stakeholders to address this area.

"As much as we fortify ourselves in having a knowledge-based regime, we need to attract talent, both local and international, cultivate a highly skilled local workforce and retain the talent capital to strengthen our own base and to support the strategic growth of Abu Dhabi and the UAE.

"We believe that an informed and knowledgeable economy not only generates greater growth, it creates opportunities and jobs for our community, companies and institutions. On this note, we at ADGM hope to have the support of leading industry bodies such as the CFA and others to enhance the business and financial environment in this region."

In conclusion, Al Sayegh said, "At ADGM we are committed to our responsibility as an IFC to be a centre of knowledge and a platform for talent development for our sector and industry. We plan to share some key announcements on this front with you all soon but in the meantime I invite you to consider ADGM to be your talent partner in Abu Dhabi."

source: WAM