Dubai International Financial Centre Launches ‘FinTech Hive at DIFC,’ the Region’s First FinTech Accelerator, Supported by Accenture | Accenture Newsroom
Set to launch in the first quarter of 2017, FinTech Hive at DIFC will bring cutting-edge financial services technology to the MEASA markets, while providing a platform that brings financial services and technology firms together. Its goal is to increase access to, and improve customer experience and drive operational efficiencies in, the financial services sector.
The global FinTech sector has attracted more than $50 billion in investment since 2010, but currently the Middle East and North Africa only attract around one percent of that investment. The DIFC Accelerator intends to bridge this gap by creating a platform that drives innovation and showcases success - identifying leading technology entrepreneurs and companies through a competitive process and offering them the opportunity to develop, test and modify their innovations in collaboration with top executives from DIFC and regional financial institutions.
Commenting on the launch of FinTech Hive at DIFC, His Excellency Essa Kazim, Governor of Dubai International Financial Centre and Chairman of DIFC Authority Board of Directors, said, “We are proud to be launching FinTech Hive at DIFC following the recent announcement of the world’s first government accelerator programmes by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE, and Ruler of Dubai. The UAE National Innovation Strategy and Dubai Plan 2021 steer us to be among the smartest cities in the world. With our founding Membership in the Global Blockchain Council and today’s launch, DIFC is pioneering innovative developments in the MEASA’s financial services sector, while taking our economies to new horizons.”
Sushil Saluja, senior managing director of Financial Services in Europe, Africa and Latin America at Accenture, said, “DIFC is uniquely positioned to become the regional hub for FinTech. By putting together local banks and FinTech firms to ideate, collaborate and partner, DIFC is helping both sectors be at the forefront of the financial services industry. The accelerator programme will identify the best entrepreneurs within the financial services industry and grant them invaluable access to, and feedback from, potential customers and funders.”
Accenture was chosen to set up and operate the DIFC Accelerator because of its experience and expertise in building and running FinTech Innovation Labs. Accenture founded its first FinTech Innovation Lab in 2010 in New York with the Partnership Fund for New York City, the US$150 million investment arm of the Partnership for New York City. Accenture launched its second Lab in London, modelled after the New York Lab, and opened two other Labs in 2014 in Hong Kong and Dublin. Globally, the Labs’ alumni companies have raised more than US$386 million in venture financing after participating in the programme. This new Accelerator is further demonstration of DIFC’s commitment to providing an internationally oriented FinTech ecosystem that meets the specific needs of the Middle East, Africa and South Asia, in line with Dubai Plan 2021 and the DIFC 2024 Strategy.
FinTech Hive at DIFC will start with a 12 week ‘accelerator programme,’ which will bring together the next generation of leaders and entrepreneurs to compete and address the growing needs of the region’s financial services industry, using innovative technology solutions. It intends to catalyse the growth and efficiency in a variety of areas including trade finance, alternative finance such as P2P payments, and Sharia-based services.
Arif Amiri, Chief Executive Officer of DIFC Authority, said, “In 2004, DIFC led the development of global financial services by linking the top financial centres around the world to the region. The FinTech Hive at DIFC is a continuation of our vision to link, develop, and adapt top financial technologies to the region. DIFC is fast becoming a pivotal hub in the global economy, already being home to 17 of the world’s top 20 banks, with over 1,500 firms and 21,000 employees – most of whom are exploring FinTech solutions to tap into the world’s fastest growing economies. We are committed to providing a diverse and forward-thinking ecosystem to support FinTech innovation.”
Omar Boulos, regional managing director of Accenture in the Middle East and North Africa, said, “The digital era will define the region’s future in terms of liquidity and growth. The FinTech market, with a global investment of $22.3 billion in 2015, has already begun revolutionizing the banking industry by offering new ways of unlocking resources and capital, while driving efficiency and creating new partnerships. With 99 percent of consumers in the UAE using a mobile or smartphone, FinTech has the potential to make a real difference.”
In 2015, DIFC launched its 2024 growth strategy, a blueprint for the next decade of growth of the financial hub. This strategy aims to stimulate trade and investment flows along the South-South economic corridor encompassing Africa, Southern Asia and Latin America. Currently, 1,539 active registered companies operate from the Centre, with a combined workforce of 21,076 professionals. DIFC continues to pursue expansion into new services and sectors within the Middle East, Africa and South Asia region, an area comprising over 72 countries with an approximate population of 3 billion and nominal GDP of US$7.8 trillion. For further information, please visit our website: www.difc.ae, or follow us on Twitter at DIFC.
Toulouse, 13th December 2017 - Singapore Airlines has taken delivery of the first of five new A380 aircraft scheduled to join the carrier’s fleet over the coming year, at a special ceremony hosted by Airbus in Toulouse. The aircraft delivered today is the first in the airline’s fleet to feature its recently launched on-board cabin products and innovations.
“We are proud to deliver the first of five new A380s to Singapore Airlines featuring the carrier's beautiful new cabin design,” said Tom Enders, Airbus Chief Executive Officer. “Singapore Airlines was the first to fly the A380 and has operated the aircraft with the highest levels of technical excellence since day one. The aircraft has proven to be a huge commercial success in service with the carrier, flying passengers efficiently and in comfort on the airline’s long haul and regional network.”
Home > News Releases > Berkeley College Meets with New York Legislators and Business Leaders at 2016 SOMOS Puerto Rico Conference
Photo Caption: Students and officials from Berkeley College journeyed to the Caribe Hilton in San Juan, Puerto Rico, to participate in the 2016 SOMOS Puerto Rico Conference, held from November 9 to 13, 2016. Hosted by SOMOS el Futuro in collaboration with the New York State Assembly Puerto Rican/Hispanic Task Force, the annual fall conference brings together legislators, scholars, business and labor leaders to address concerns currently effecting the Latino community in New York, Puerto Rico, and beyond.
Pictured above, Adolfo Carrión, Jr. (Second to Right), Founder & CEO, MetroFutures, LLC., meets (L to R) Dallas Reed, PhD, Berkeley College Vice President, Student Development and Campus Life, and Berkeley College students Alexis Gonzalez (Right) of Queens, NY, and Rebecca Aguilera (Left) of White Plains, NY, during the 2016 SOMOS Puerto Rico Conference. Mr. Carrión was the first director of the Office of Urban Affairs in President Barack Obama’s Administration, and also previously the Regional Director for the U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development and two-term Bronx Borough President.
Pictured below on the left, Dr. Reed, Mr. Gonzalez and Ms. Aguilera meet with Ritchie Torres (Second to Right), New York City Council Member and Chair, Committee on Public Housing (15th District). Picture below on the right, Mr. Gonzalez and Ms. Aguilera meet with Assemblyman Victor M. Pichardo (86th District).
Does the type of car you drive indicate your political affiliation? A computer algorithm developed by researchers from Stanford University seems to suggest so, having found that neighborhoods dominated by sedans tend towards liberalism, while those containing mostly pickup trucks lean more towards the right. The model used by the Stanford team evaluated vehicle types […]
Is Facebook eavesdropping in pursuit of the almighty dollar? Social media giant denies allegations it uses your microphone to target advertising
Facebook has been lobbied with accusations of spying for the purposes of ad targeting. The social media giant came under fire after PJ Vogt, co-host of technology-oriented podcast Reply All, posted a tweet. It read: “Reply All is taking phone calls today. Call us if you believe that Facebook uses your mic to spy on […]
Below are some key terms we’ve already identified and some terms that I hope to touch on next class.
On Friday I took the 6 train up to the Upper East Side. I got off at 103rd Street, and walked from Lexington Avenue, under Park Avenue where the train goes over, and to Fifth Avenue. At 100th Street I arrived at the Museum of the City of New York, a somewhat awkwardly-titled institution which celebrates the history, culture and greatness of this city. The exhibitions ranged from jazz-age photos of skyscrapers to the history of theater to the glory days of New York baseball. It was fascinating and beautifully presented. The highlight however was a short film — narrated by actor Stanley Tucci — telling the moving story of how New York came to be and why it is like it is.
It was one of those lovely, drizzly autumn days, and so after the museum I walked down Fifth Avenue by the park. Eventually I cut inside and wandered over to Second Avenue. There are many beautiful blocks in-between, and many nice shops and restaurants in that neighbourhood. Among them is Elaine’s, once the hangout for the intellectual A-list and still catering to those celebrities who don’t go by acronyms and who are just old enough to remember a time when a BlackBerry was just a fruit. The first scene of Manhattan (1979) takes place at Elaine’s, where Woody Allen is fretting to his friends about his 17 year-old girlfriend. Later I walked down to First Avenue and under the Queensboro Bridge. I saw the spot where I watched the July 4th fireworks in 1999, and I stopped at Sutton Place to admire the view. This also featured in Manhattan, and on the movie’s iconic poster.
Last week I took a bus from Port Authority Bus Terminal at 42nd Street to Elizabeth, New Jersey. This may seem an insignificant event to some of you. After all, many people make this or similar journeys every day. But for me it was the first time I had left New York, ventured beyond the city, and set foot on real American soil (or at least asphalt). The reason for this trip, you will be disappointed to learn, was that I needed to pick up some house essentials from IKEA, a truth which I recognize completely dispels any romantic notion of the occasion I may have had. I certainly didn’t expect my first visit to another state to be caused by the urgent need for cheap lamps and coat-hangers. Instead I had always imagined taking a bus down the Jersey shore, hanging in them dusty arcades and chasing the factory girls underneath the boardwalk. But from what I’ve heard a Swedish furniture store is as good a reason as any to visit Elizabeth, and so off I went. It was a huge thrill to take in those Manhattan views as we crossed the Turnpike, and my head suddenly became filled with Springsteen lyrics and Sopranos images.
On Friday morning I achieved a lifelong ambition as New Jersey came to New York, in the form of Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band. Bruce and the boys were appearing on NBC’s Today Show in Rockefeller Plaza, and I had to be there. Hillary had arrived from Italy the previous evening, but I left her in bed to make my way up to Midtown at seven in the morning. From a young age Bruce’s music has influenced my perception of and fascination for American East Coast life perhaps more than any other artist. The characters that colour his earlier albums with their romantic optimism and almost naïve aspirations richly evoke a world where a girl, a car — or maybe just a guitar — are all you need to go out and make it. The band’s heavy influence of ’60s soul bands, it eccentric, jazz-tinged playing, and Bruce’s mysterious allusions at passionate street crime lead me to forever associate that music with a hot and gritty New York City, despite the group’s inexorable links to New Jersey. Now suddenly here I was, feet away from these Jersey boys, the same men (almost) who posed barefoot on the back cover of The Wild, The Innocent & The E Street Shuffle over three decades ago.
I never expected to one day see the same guys performing outside a Dean & Deluca on daytime television, nor did I ever imagine witnessing a concert before breakfast, but it seemed both were happening right now. Through the crowd I could make out drummer Max Weinberg’s Late Night quiff, and before I knew it Bruce was on stage — the same trademark beat-up Telecaster slung over one shoulder — as the band broke into a perfect rendition of “The Promised Land.” They then performed several tracks from the new album, Magic, including ubiquitous single “Radio Nowhere” and “Livin’ In The Future”, which Bruce introduced with one of his typical rambles:
“There’s a lot of things we love about America. Cheeseburgers, transfats, motorcycles, divorce, and cheating on your spouse. But over the past six years, we’ve had to add another picture. Therapy, medication, counseling, catholicism, HIV tests, anti-depressants, sleeping in barns, and botox. These are things happening today that we never thought possible.”
Between songs Bruce cracked jokes at Today Show host Matt Lauer’s expense, gave hugs to Steven Van Zandt and Nils Lofgren, and even found time to speak his mind on the state of the nation. Springsteen is one of few people left in the entertainment world whose political opinions aren’t greeted with derision. The crowd was then treated to “Night” from Born To Run and an extremely moving “My Hometown.”
An overcast morning had now given way to bright sunshine as Bruce sang repeatedly: “This is your hometown, this is youurrrr hometown…” I’d been in New York just two weeks, but I couldn’t help think and hope and feel that there could be something prophetic in the man’s words.
It was a humid evening when I arrived in New York last Friday night. Aching and weary having spent most of the day aboard a Lufthansa jet, I was immediately awoken by the series of advertisements which greeted me at JFK Airport. As I made my way through the endless maze of corridors leading to immigration, my eyes were bombarded with the repeated image of what appeared to be a sort of executive Etch-a-Sketch, but which upon closer inspection was in fact a device they’re calling the Sony Reader. Some very clever people in Japan had figured out a way to compress multiple hardback books into one small tablet of brushed metal, allowing an author’s life’s work to be slotted into a holiday-maker’s carry-on luggage.
Upon learning of this revolutionary product for the first time, two thoughts immediately struck me. 1) If the Reader is a success – which means within a year or two we will be adding it to that cluster of gadgets we all believe we can’t leave the house without – what will it mean for the future of the printed page? Will books become obsolete? It certainly won’t help reverse the youngest generation’s already concerning preference for electronic screens over pens and paper (though could go some way to correcting posture among schoolchildren). 2) How long had I been on that plane?
I first came to New York City as a wide-eyed, highly impressionable 20 year-old. It was the sweltering summer of 1999, and I was achieving an ambition which had stood firm since childhood and throughout my teens, one which for some reason I had never imagined possible. As a boy, New York City may as well have been another planet, so remote seemed the possibility of ever visiting. The few people I met who said they had been left me in awe. Though apparently unattainable in reality, thanks to television New York was accessible daily. What I saw was a tough, gleaming city crammed with the tallest buildings and coolest people, where danger, excitement or something else entirely lurked on every street corner, and where the traffic and the music never stopped. I become all too aware of it, and the attraction was something not even my overworked imagination could fathom. It was the city for me.
Armed with a pocket fold-out map and my Pentax K1000, I spent every waking minute of that week absorbing the city like a sponge, memorizing every detail, taking in (and photographing extensively) every skyscraper, monument, museum, hot-dog stand and fire hydrant along the way. And I walked everywhere (though there’s nothing quite like the thrill of hailing your first yellow cab). I stayed in a hotel on the Upper West Side, and the greatest feeling of all was simply being on the street, strolling up and down Broadway, eating pizza by the slice, chatting with strangers and briefly living a life that could only ever be make believe. I went home with a case of NY-emblazoned merchandise and eleven rolls of exposed film, a changed man.
A lot had happened in the relatively short period which had ensued. Some would say the world had changed, but had New York? For better and for worse, it had, and it was a different kind of breathlessness which overcame me as Manhattan’s skyline rose into view from my taxi window. Reports claimed that crime had been declining since the nineties, when Giuliani began cracking down on the most minor offences, a trend which was supposedly continuing under Mayor Bloomberg. Meanwhile, the spectacular success of certain businesses had begun to monopolize retail space in Manhattan, resulting in a noticeable effect on the city’s physical appearance. There now seemed to be a Starbucks on every block, even in the traditionally less commercial neighbourhoods. In the Theater District, the vast billboards and blinking neon of Times Square had given way to Disney animation and state-of-the-art video graphics, which succeed in rendering even the Coca-Cola logo unrecognizable.
On the city’s not-so-mean streets, the NYPD’s azure blue Chevrolets, once immortalized by television cop shows, had been traded in for a fleet of nondescript white Fords. Those bouncing Taxi-era checkered cabs were long gone – now yellow minivans with electric doors drove tourists from airport to hotel. I read that all NYC taxis will be hybrid 4x4s by 2012. What next, floral cabs? (Oh, right.) Even more horrifying was that in response to its increasingly international population, every last one of New York’s iconic WALK/DON’T WALK lights had been replaced with a universal walking man/red hand. Now whether crossing Delancey Street or Abbey Road, the experience had become (almost) identical.
Practical types will say that change is inevitable, that cities must continue to evolve in order to survive and stay vital, and I’m sure many locals would have not noticed or cared about such relatively minor alterations to their city. But for reasons however superficial, I was becoming slightly disillusioned. Here I was, finally living in Manhattan, the pop-culture lover’s ultimate paradise, and not a DON’T WALK sign in sight. I began to wonder if even the humble pretzel vendor’s days were numbered. It was as if the New York I had always imagined, the city I’d inhabited in adolescent fantasies, was suddenly being transformed and taken away. I couldn’t help but feel I’d arrived too late. But it’s like when you meet people who say, “You should’ve seen this place twenty years ago.” What am I supposed to do about that now?
Still a little jet-lagged, I woke up early the next morning and crossed Second Avenue (upon orders from the walking man) to the coffee shop opposite. From the other side of the street the Chrysler Building was clearly visible several blocks in the distance, its soaring concrete and chrome piercing the cloud-filled sky like a needle. It wasn’t quite daylight, but inside the diner people were already tucking into breakfasts of eggs and bacon and pancakes. I took a seat at the counter and ordered coffee. Turning to face the window, I stared out and watched as the yellow cabs glided silently through the Saturday morning drizzle. Had I been foolish in clinging to a New York that is no more (or never was)? Maybe it doesn’t matter if NYC ’07 isn’t exactly the city I’d been exalting all these years. What I enjoy most about it hasn’t changed a bit, and what drew me to this place as a child can still be found everyday. Steam rises from manholes, water towers and fire escapes adorn every building, and people really do read The New York Times on the subway. And while there’s space enough in people’s lives for the printed page, there’ll be a place in mine for New York City.