Mubasher: The GCC’s fintech startups are forecast to attract investments worth $2 over the coming ten years, compared to $150 million in the previous ten years, according to MENA Research Partners’ (MRP) recent study.
Saudi Arabia and the UAE are expected to greatly participate in the potential investments and form the shape of fintech industry in the Gulf region.
The two GCC states will contribute to boosting fintech industry in view of having the highest online connectivity per capita in the region, representing 45% of the MENA’s economy, and adopting a top-down approach for creating advanced infrastructures for the smart cities of the future.
MRP previously expected the number of fintech companies in the MENA region to grow over the coming three years to reach about 260 fintech startups, compared to 130 currently.
“In the last ten years, private capital investments in GCC-based fintechs was a mere 0.007% of the GDP, 10x below the emerging markets average of 0.07% for that period and 43x below the global average of 0.3%,” MRP’s CEO Anthony Hobeika said.
After 64% of private investments in last year had been allocated to startups in traditional sectors, most of regional and global companies plan to raise investments in digital companies via fintech, e-commerce, and technology in general, Hobeika added.
“By 2020, there will be a clear shift towards fintech companies operating in the money transfer, wealth management, insurance, and blockchain solutions sub-sectors, which will expand their market share of the fintech market to 31%,” the CEO concluded.
MRP is an economic research and consultancy outsourcing company focusing on financial research and economic sector.
