(MENAFN- The Peninsula) Joel Johnson |The Peninsula
Doha, Qatar: The Arab Federation of Capital Markets (AFCM) kicked off its annual conference under the esteemed patronage of the Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Qatar, H E Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani.
The inauguration ceremony was graced by the presence of the Minister of Commerce and Industry, H E Sheikh Mohammed bin Hamad bin Qassim Al Thani and Chairman of the Qatar Stock Exchange (QSE), who inaugurated the two-day conference at The Ritz-Carlton Hotel, yesterday,
In his opening address, Minister of Commerce and Industry welcomed AFCM officials and the diverse array of delegates. He stressed the imperative for collaboration among Arab financial market institutions to fortify investment environment and promote integration. Highlighting the significance of technological localization, he advocated for leveraging of resources to enhance technology across institutions.
Furthermore, he also underscored interconnectedness of global economies and geopolitical shifts, urging Arab capital markets to forge partnership bridges and exchange experiences amidst international conditions marked by strong blocs and regional disturbances.
The Minister expressed optimism that the conference would be insightful on significant topics that reinforces AFCM's aspirations and its members and higlighted importance of cultivating an advanced investment and financial environment conducive to facilitating transactions in regional and international financial markets.
The conference agenda comprises nine dialogue sessions centering on topics relevant to the securities industry and the role of financial markets in its enhancement.
The very first panel session at the event shed light on the pivotal role of Capital markets in the Third Financial Sector Strategy. Experts included Abdulaziz Nasser Al Emadi, the newly appointed President of the Arab Federation of Capital Markets (AFCM) and Acting CEO of the Qatar Stock Exchange, Yousuf Mohamed Al Jaida, Chief Executive Officer of Qatar Financial Centre (QFC), and Sheikh Ahmed Bin Khalid Al Thani, Assistant Governor, Financial Instruments and Payment Systems at Qatar Central Bank.
Minister of Commerce and Industry, H E Sheikh Mohammed bin Hamad bin Qassim Al Thani addressing the conference.
Al Emadi emphasised that the third financing strategy could be the most comprehensive one and is well structured and accurately planned. He said,“Our strategy will be to focus more on increasing the equity in order to start the business of asset management and to provide more diverse opportunities, which makes the strategy a really good opportunity.”
Highlighting the core benefits and impacts of the recently launched Third Financial Sector Strategy, Al Jaida explained,“Ultimately, for the financial services industry to achieve certain goals and objectives, this strategy develops the ecosystem when it comes to financial services, verticals, and making insurance.”
“When it comes to the liberty of the third financial sector strategy, we may be the players other than the Central Bank, which is the main regulator for the entire industry,” Al Jaida said.
He also mentioned that the Financial Center, which is also a legal and regulatory environment was put together to attract foreign direct investment and enhance the financial services industry by drawing more multinational institutions to participate in the local economy and to assist and support the local financial institutions while developing new products and taking part in global markets.
Al Jaida elaborated that the financial center plays a crucial role in this strategy mainly due to the registration of licensed insurance companies.“We are a main attraction for financial technology companies and digital assets in cooperation with the Central Bank and we also contribute to the development of capital markets by allowing our companies to list on the exchange,” he said.
Stressing that the region is poised to be politically stable, he remarked“I believe that GCC in the next 10 years will become one of the hubs globally for asset managers. We're working on attracting venture capital funds, including start-up funds.
“These are stable governments with fiscal surpluses. Oil and gas will continue for the next decade and believe in positive territory. So all reports indicate that this area will attract asset managers to conduct business between East and West.
Sheikh Ahmed outlined the launch of the Instant payment service - 'Fawran', which was welcomed by over 100,000 users in the country as a vital financial sector strategy in the market.
He said it reiterates as one of the fastest adaptation systems in the world.“We're also working on another initiative to improve the infrastructure such as the ecosystem,” Sheikh Ahmed noted.
“We are aiming to have a state-of-the-art infrastructure in Qatar,” he said adding the country has many top universities, and thus it's important to build a new structure to help them innovate.
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