Revenues of $2 trillion in global digital payments are expected by 2020, said the organisers of the upcoming Gitex Technology Week, the largest technology exchange and marketplace for Middle East & Africa, in Dubai, UAE.

The event is running from October 16 to 20 at Dubai World Trade Centre.

Gitex Technology Week 2016 will welcome an exceptional line-up of finance and technology experts, including James Barrese, formally CTO of PayPal and senior vice president of Payment Services, and Andres Wolberg-Stok, global head of Emerging Platforms and Services from Citi to shed light on the state of FinTech (technology-enabled banking and finance).

“Banks, startups and non-banking players are disrupting the global banking and finance industry with mobile apps, immersive technology and non-traditional payments,” said Barrese.

“Emerging markets like the Middle East have the drive for innovation and opportunity to build next-gen infrastructure, enabling them to become global leaders in the digital payments revolution while providing a lifeline for billions of under-banked people.”

Emerging markets represent 90 per cent of mobile growth, according to industry body GSMA, and these figures are set to grow. With the UAE’s on-going progress in becoming a hub for FinTech, the potential for GCC-home grown innovation is apparent. As many FinTech solutions begin as small businesses and startups the Gitex Startup Movement at Gitex Technology Week 2016 is set to provide support for up-and-coming FinTech entrepreneurs.

Currently, 2 billion people use at least one of 270 available mobile money services, and industry studies show the need for further easy-to-use digital payment solutions.  Frequent mobile banking users are 40 per cent less likely to switch banks, and customers who primarily use bank branches are three times more likely to switch banks, according to a report by consultancy Bain & Company.

Across Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA), 96 per cent of banks are deploying end-to-end digital transformation strategies, with cloud computing, Big Data analytics, and mobile apps for enhancing the customer experience, according to a new report by IDC Financial Insights and global technology company SAP. Half of EMEA banks report that they will hire a Chief Digital Officer by 2020 to support these strategies, according to the report.

“Mobile apps have become a game-changer for global banking and finance, as in every other industry. Firstly, they have trained consumers to demand that every service should be simple and pleasant to use. Secondly, they have demolished entry barriers and levelled the playing field, enabling emerging markets to compete on an equal footing for primacy in the next wave of innovation,” said Wolberg-Stok.

Wolberg-Stok will be taking the stage during Gitex Technology Week’s Finance Tuesday, an industry vertical conference that will expand on new technologies and innovations, the “omni-channel” approach and the integration of digital and physical banking.

Wolberg-Stok has led development of Citi’s mobile apps, including the first Apple Watch app from a major bank. “Wearables hold major potential for banks, providing unprecedented intimacy and knowledge about customers,” said Wolberg-Stok.

Also at Gitex Technology Week’s Finance Tuesday conference, Deniz Devrim Gegniz, head of Digital Banking, Turkish Economy Bank (TEB) will present on launching debit cards with a built-in keypad, and a Google Glass financial app. Padmanaban TA, assistant vice president for Digital Banking at IndusInd Bank in India will explain fingerprint or swipe identification instead of PINs.

Sharing global best practices at Gitex Technology Week 2016 will be multinational digital payment providers such as Gemalto from France and NEC Global from Japan. Putting the UAE on the global stage will be digital payments startup Trriple and debit and credit card experts Cardz Middle East.

“By bringing together the leading banking and finance innovators under one roof, Gitex Technology Week aims to create new streams of revenue for FinTech leaders in emerging markets, and connect digital startups with investors to scale up. We’re also dedicated to boosting the UAE’s role as a global hub for banking and finance innovation,” said Trixie LohMirmand, senior vice-president, Exhibitions and Events Management, Dubai World Trade Centre. – TradeArabia News Service