Under the theme ‘The Bank of the Future’, the 3rd Financial Technology Summit 2007, which takes place on 23-25 April 2007 at the JW Marriot Hotel in Dubai, will explore the critical issues & challenges facing the regional banking industry. Next generation banking platforms and the latest regulatory and compliance requirements being enforced on Arab banks, along with the perennial issues of globalisation, mergers and acquisitions and cost-effective systems will inevitably drive banks towards more complex technological solutions.
Hussein Hamza, Financial Industry Director, Oracle Middle East & Africa, commented, “Banks still continue to accommodate islands of information, mostly fragmented and working in silos. The need to consolidate information so that they are better equipped to respond are challenges most banks face today. They need to align technology to enable a service–oriented architecture that will streamline and meet these challenges,”
Mergers and acquisitions, also require a unified and common technology framework that can be deployed and integrated quickly and effectively whilst reducing overheads in terms of human capital, multiple hardware, software and services’ acquisitions. Indeed, banks are continuously working on technological initiatives to adapt and improve security measures. This is one of the primary reasons why many banks in the region refuse to offer comprehensive e-services to their customers. Internet security is one issue but there is security at the application and infrastructure level as well.
Omar Agha, Global Chief Information Officer, Arab Bank, stated, “Many new entrants into the market have outsourced their IT ‘kitchen’ to India and Asia, while most Middle East banks lack the appetite to take such strategic steps. It is therefore essential for regional banks to examine their IT operating models, service delivery, cost structure and reengineer to prepare for a competitive future.”
Certainly one area in which regional banks already has a competitive edge is mobile technologies. The Middle East has one of the highest penetration rates for mobile phones in the world today, far higher than the penetration rate for Internet access. The infrastructure and coverage that exists for mobile telephony is much more advanced compared to other communications and can easily be leveraged for commercial applications.
Khaled Eid, Managing Director, The World Development Forum, concluded, “Today, most Arab banks and especially those who drive a major portion of their business through retail/consumer and corporate banking are aggressively pursuing e-services. Regulatory compliance will fuel this momentum and will shape ‘Bank of the Future’ in the Middle East.”
The FT Summit is an exclusive invitation-only event for CIOs of the TOP 100 Arab Banks, Central Banks and leading IT vendors, from throughout the region. With its cutting edge format, the FT Summit is appropriate for the complexity and sensitivity of the financial technology sector.
Organised by Dubai-based World Development Forum, the FT Summit has attracted high profile sponsors such as Oracle and STME as Gold Sponsors. Trend Micro and ITS have chosen Silver sponsorship and IMTAC has taken the bronze.
About the FT Summit:
The FT Summit is an exclusive event - by invitation only- for the senior IT decision makers of the financial sector in the Middle East. The annual assembly is now in its third year and has been designed for industry leaders to exchange their knowledge, insights, and discuss the financial industry's most pressing issues.
The aim is to offer an opportunity for the financial institutions to meet with the preeminent IT vendors & Solution providers in a professional and friendly atmosphere, to discuss how technology can turn their strategic vision into reality.
