(MENAFN- Mid-East Info) Transforming the Future of Finance: Connected Banking Summit – Saudi Arabia 2025 Highlights Innovation, Inclusion, and Collaboration

The 22nd Connected Banking Summit Innovation & Excellence Awards 2025 took place at the Radisson Blu Riyadh Convention and Exhibition Center, gathering senior banking leaders, technology firms, policymakers, and fintech innovators to define the next chapter of financial transformation in the Kingdom.

Vision 2030 in Motion:

Throughout the summit, the message was consistent. The Kingdom's financial sector is moving from discussion into delivery. Banks and financial institutions are redesigning services, infrastructure, and customer engagement with technology at the core. This reflects Vision 2030 not as a policy statement, but as an operating model taking shape across the market.

Leadership and Key Voices:

The summit was held in the presence of Mohammed AlSarrani, Deputy Director General, Financial Sector Development Program (Ministry of Finance, KSA), who attended as the Guest of Honour representing the Minister of Finance. His presence highlighted the importance of financial modernization as a national economic priority.

Featured speakers included:

• Soha Hussein Aboul Farag, CEO, Bank of Jordan KSA, who spoke about trust-based digital adoption and the importance of aligning transformation with customer expectations and cultural realities.
• Dhary Alshammry, Expert – Audit & Governance who emphasized resilience as a leadership responsibility. Governance, cybersecurity, and operational assurance must advance alongside innovation.
• Marat Ismagulov, Human Capital Management Director and Management Board Member, Alfa Bank, who stressed that scaling AI depends on people. Skills, structure, and decision-making are as critical as the technology itself.

Executives from Zoom, Nintex, Newgen, Appice, and Alfa Bank contributed real implementation insights, showing AI, automation, and intelligent workflows already improving efficiency and customer experience across financial institutions.

Key Themes from the Discussions:

• AI-led customer experience that enhances trust and simplicity
• Cyber and operational resilience treated as enterprise-wide priorities
• Open banking shifting from regulatory compliance into commercial value creation
• Embedded finance making services more intuitive and accessible in daily life
• Organizational culture as the foundation for transformation at scale

The tone throughout the summit was practical. Transformation succeeds when technology, governance, and execution are aligned and paced correctly.

Innovation and Excellence Awards 2025:

The awards recognized organizations that delivered measurable progress in digital finance and customer value:

• Excellence in Digital Banking: Bank Albilad
• Best Use of AI in HR Tech: Alfa Bank
• Excellence in International Banking Partnership: Nintex
• Excellence in Digital Innovation: Appice
• Excellence in Regional Banking and Cross Border Financial Services: First Abu Dhabi Bank KSA

These awards highlighted institutions moving beyond announcements and into meaningful implementation.

About the Organiser:

The International Center for Strategic Alliances (ICSA) is a global organization that designs platforms for collaboration, knowledge exchange, and leadership dialogue across sectors including banking, technology, sustainability, and digital transformation. ICSA convenes decision makers, innovators, and policy leaders to shape the future of industry through high-impact executive forums, strategic summits, and thought leadership initiatives.

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