Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM), the International Financial Centre in Abu Dhabi, has brought together a dynamic line-up of global FinTech leaders, innovators, financial regulators and trend-setters at the upcoming FinTech Abu Dhabi in October 2017. This will also be the first appearance in the Middle East region for many of the key speakers. FinTech Abu Dhabi Summit promises to be an exciting exchange of new ideas, experience and business opportunities.

Taking place between 22 and 23 October 2017, the Summit will feature several regional and international industry-leading experts and entrepreneurs including: Fadi Ghandour, Executive Chairman, Wamda Capital; Elizabeth Lumley, Global FinTech Commentator; Ambareen Musa, Founder, Souqalmal.com; Clive Cooke, Managing Director, R3, Matteo Rizzi, FinTech investor and many others.

Executive Chairman of Wamda Capital, Fadi Ghandour will also participate in the event as a panelist on 'Transforming the MENA Region into an International Innovation Hub'. Fadi is also the founder of logistics and transportation giant Aramex, the first Arab world company to list on the NASDAQ. He also started early-stage startup angel fund MENA Venture Investments (MVI), so has a wealth of varied experience that will surely lead to a spirited discussion with his fellow eminent panelists.

The line-up goes global with the addition of internationally renowned FinTech commentator, Elizabeth Lumley, fondly known as 'The Godmother of FinTech'. Having spent over 20 years working in the financial technology space, Liz will be part of the international panel on ‘Thriving Ecosystems: Global FinTech Update' which will discuss creating and growing ecosystems that foster FinTech innovation.

Yobie Benjamin, the co-founder & CTO of Token, an open banking platform that allows financial institutions, businesses, and people to instantly and securely move money wherever they are located, will be hosting a fireside chat on 'Connectivity of The Future' with a focus on open APIs and distributed ledger technology.

On the panel 'Innovation for the Un(der)banked, Ambareen Musa, founder of Souqalmal.com, will share leading initiatives and FinTech solutions to reach low-income and geographically-isolated consumers alongside her fellow panelists. Musa is also the co-author of 'Entrepreneurial Opportunities On The Internet'.

As part of the panel on 'Investing in Innovation: The Next Frontier of FinTech', Matteo Rizzi, FinTech Investor and Clive Cooke, Managing Director & Head of Business Development at R3, an enterprise software firm, will join leading investors to identify the next major areas of disruption and innovation in FinTech.

Matteo Rizzi has been actively engaged in the FinTech space for over 20 years and has valuable connections amongst global banks executives, startups and investors. He founded swiftcommunity.net, the communication platform 2.0 that fosters interactive dialogue in the financial community and co­founded Innotribe, the innovation arm of SWIFT. And Clive Cooke has extensive experience of managing businesses in the financial markets, having worked in all of the major financial centers. Clive was also a founding partner at Williams, Cooke, Lott and Kissack Ltd, the first electronic broker of UK Government bonds.

Updates of the FinTech Abu Dhabi programme and speakers available at www.fintechabudhabi.com