Asset Abu Dhabi - Keynote Address

foreign [Music] good afternoon and welcome to the nation's capital Abu Dhabi soon to be the Region's Financial capital it gives me a great pleasure to be in your company at the DPO edition of Abu Dhabi Finance week the latest Financial business platform of the world I alongside his Excellency chairman of adgm very much look forward to the various discussions assessments and Analysis taking place throughout this week but allow me first to briefly touch on the global Market's status quo as one of the backdrops against our gathering here this week with Global Financial sectors and economies working to make sense of the prevalent headwinds following a period of volatility and stability it remains imperative that financial markets economists and Central Bankers use the necessary tools and regulations to fight inflation around the world and ensure price stability without price stability and open trade and free-flowing businesses the economy does not work for anyone with the world constantly changing at an accelerated Pace we cannot underestimate The Importance of Being prepared and preempting for the unexpected for the best of our abilities as custodians of an economy driving economic policy and legislation and similar for my Banking and Financial regulator peers to adopt and implement various local and international regulations reforms and standards onshore and offshore that guard our financial systems such as the basil Accords in the U.S irfs standards and so on towards minimizing the buildup of risks and vulnerabilities the uee has gained significant experience from past Global recessions and we have learned that challenges can be turned into opportunities there is consensus on the need to shift from a financial Capital market system to an inclusive Capital market system and from short-term capital markets to a sustainable Capital markets Abu Dhabi and an extension the UAE have and continue to weather the global headwinds well thanks to a robust macro economy standards regulations business friendly and open market policies and of course our well-developed infrastructure and numerous multilateral relations that ensure free trade remains uninterrupted to maintain a stable robust and sustainable economy and under the guidance and vision of our leadership we at the Department of Economic Development focus on economic diversification and integration buildup by that we mean growing an economy Beyond its typical and conventional parameters and understanding courtesy of the strong and financial and beneficial public-private sector partner ecosystem Abu Dhabi has created a social Business Financial economic model to help business owners and investors integrate easily into the economy Abu Dhabi has harnessed a supportive business and investment environment having simplified the process of starting unconducted businesses to give you an example onshore in Abu Dhabi we have considerably lowered business setup and license renewal fees by 90 percent and eliminated 70 percent of licensing requirements furthermore I urge you to try our investor Journey online platform for setting up a business in the Emirate which easily helps you integrate within the ecosystem we have enabled an entrepreneurial and Innovative environment both onshore and offshore and are focusing our efforts towards perfecting a knowledge based Economy based on circular and sustainable attributes together with the financial sector these efforts have resulted in international acknowledgment placing the UAE first on the global entrepreneurial index 2022 first in the Arab world on 19th globally for the ability to attract foreign investments according to the world investment report ladies and gentlemen we are taking active yet prudent steps towards growth and diversification of the economy alongside other government entities with the unwavering support of our leadership the plan is simple keep making Abu Dhabi the friendliest and most affordable business destination diversify the economy and deepen our financial sector by expanding financing options for thriving businesses earlier in July last year the Department of Economic Development along with adx initiated the robust regulatory framework proposal for facilitating initial public offerings of Sparks providing young companies with a new source of funding and potential worldwide investors the proposed regulations would also allow sponsors outside of the UAE to apply for approval to list their specs on adx Abu Dhabi continues to identify New Opportunities and initiatives aimed at stimulating economic growth and boost investment flows and here ladies and gentlemen from this Global platform I am delighted to share a milestone with you on the IPO scene the Region's largest fund dedicated to IPO listings on the Abu Dhabi security exchange is indeed garnering steady momentum with private sector companies as we push through our plans to further activate a wave of IPOs in the capital the 5 billion Dirham Abu Dhabi IPO fund which is managed by Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development has already shortlisted an initial list of six private sector companies towards receiving potential investment and advisory Services helping them qualify for a listing on the adx the fund has also developed an additional pipeline of 32 companies as potential candidates for receiving these advisory services the fund's task force has been assessing local and Regional companies from various sectors to create a short list of qualified candidates that it can support during the pre-ipo and IPO phase the support offered by the IPO fund combines potential investment in their Public public book building phase tailored relationship Management Services and ecosystem access that include regulatory stakeholders and Market contributors furthermore the fund is currently in dialogue with 30 prospective companies that are considering listing on the adx our mandate is further strengthened the Emirates business and investment environment by prioritizing relationship management support services that it offers exclusively thus ensuring streamline efficient and on-time process for building a thriving investment culture in the Emirates deepening financial markets and catalyzing the growth of the private sector as a whole the Abu Dhabi IPO fund forms a critical part of ded's mandate for further activate the Emirates Global Capital markets and financial sector landscape within the macro economy Abu Dhabi has been focusing on facilitating encouraging and providing smart assistance to actively supports startups and entrepreneurs and to scale them up in the long term we will extensively focus on supporting and boosting the performance of several high-growth field bearing opportunities for talented individuals to thrive these include financial services and fintech specifically creative Industries and research and development among others we see fintech as a force of bringing Financial Services to the unbanked and underbanked through enabling wider reach lower transactional cost and client access we also consider rig Tech regulation Technologies continuing to be a priority and an ongoing Global development as part of efforts tackling Global Financial irregulatories and crime and will continue to support such disrupting Tech players out of the Emirates to maintain a standing as a global business and financial Hub Abu Dhabi has set forth a strategy to strengthen its non-oil sectors diversify investment opportunities and empower the private sector I will leave you now with a short video on Abu Dhabi IPO fund and I wish you all the great and productive week ahead and look forward to networking with you thank you so much [Applause]