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MEFTECH-KSA 2019 in Riyadh

Tag: fintech

MEFTECH-KSA 2019 in Riyadh

MEFTECH-KSA 2019 in Riyadh

Explore the latest in the world of financial technology with MEFTECH-KSA 2019 in Riyadh

The e-commerce landscape in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has become more dynamic than ever before, and the credit goes to forward-thinking financial and technological institutions. The process of making and receiving payments online has especially become extremely advanced and convenient, helping local businesses in KSA to go global with ease. And as the longest running banking and financial technology event, MEFTECH-KSA 2019 will focus on e-commerce payment systems and more.

The MEFTECH-KSA 2019 event will see numerous governments departments, banks, and enterprises of various sizes come together to network, exchange knowledge and pave the way for better business opportunities. And, as one of the leading names in the world of online payment gateway providers in the GCC region, PayTabs will participate in this event as well. PayTabs is the first Saudi fintech company that is all set to disrupt the way e-commerce transactions are carried out, by offering unique advantages to both customers and merchants.

What is MEFTECH-KSA 2019 all about?  

MEFTECH-KSA 2019 will be held on 24th and 25th February in Riyadh, in partnership with SAMA, the prominent payment authority in KSA. Till date, MEFTECH has been able to draw more than 1000 technology providers and 8000 financial industry executives in Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Bahrain. The 2019 event will especially focus on the fast-changing payment scenario in the ecommerce and retail sectors in Saudi Arabia.

Industry leaders are expected to share thoughts and knowledge about the latest developments in the payments sector, and discuss game-changing technologies such as:

  • Mobile payments
  • Blockchain and digital currencies
  • Fintech vs. Banks
  • Cashless evolution
  • AI and machine learning
  • Authentication

Various programs such as conferences, open theatres and roundtable discussions will be conducted where entrepreneurs, disrupters and innovators will join hands to explore all things new and promising in the world of payments.

Why will PayTabs participate?

PayTabs is a new-age online payment gateway provider that makes online transactions smooth, fast and safe. We accept over 168 currencies and offer multiple payment modes to make the experience better for both merchants and customers. Our cutting-edge anti-fraud technology, ease of technical integration, and express checkout process are features that will help boost the e-commerce landscape in KSA like never before. At MEFTECH-KSA 2019, we intend to share our experience and ideas about how an efficient online payment gateway can help local businesses expand, improve sales, monitor transactions from anywhere and anytime, track performance and develop strategies for the long run.

Important details about MEFTECH-KSA 2019

The MEFTECH-KSA 2019 event will be held at the Four Seasons Hotel in Riyadh, at Kingdom Centre on Olaya Street. Master passes can be bought for a 2-day access or separately for day 1 or day 2. These passes will give you access to:

  • 3500 square meters of exhibition space
  • World Class Conference
  • MEFTECH Innovation Theatre
  • MEFTECH Innovation Awards
  • Galaxy Fintech Startup Zone

Trade visitors can explore the exhibition, the innovation theater and the Galaxy Fintech Startup zone only, for free. The roundtable discussions on day 1 (24th February) and day 2 (25th February) can be attended for free, though seats are limited and subject to approval.

So, don’t miss this one-of-a-kind opportunity and register your name for the MEFTECH-KSA 2019 event. Find out how leaders in the financial and technology sectors brainstorm, ideate and explain the recent developments in payment systems and more.

Blockchain: Driving the Future of FinTech

Blockchain: Driving the Future of FinTech

Every once in a generation, comes a paradigm shift in innovation, that changes the way we engage in our daily lives enabled by technology. Be it the Internet in the 1980s or the penetration of smartphones, a decade ago. The Internet and Smartphones have fundamentally changed some of our key actions as human beings! Such has been their impact to human evolution!

Well, Blockchain is another technology rising on the horizon, poised to change the way we deal with enterprises or a government body for that matter. As of today, Blockchain is only being applied to the outer realms of financial services, more specifically, cryptocurrencies.

What is Blockchain?

Quite simply put, it is a grow list of blocks of records which are linked and secured using cryptography, meaning such blocks of records are connected and encrypted for security purposes. In terms of application of the theory, it is an open and distributed ledger that can record transactions between two parties in an efficient manner that’s verifiable and permanent in nature.

How is the Fintech Industry leveraging Blockchain?

In a way, cryptocurrencies are a part of the Fintech Industry and their entire business model is based on blockchain, wherein they offer virtual currency to anyone who can purchase parts of one unit of that currency and keep trading with that part, thereby making money in the process. Buying cryptocurrencies is also considered as a long-term investment by many. The beauty of these virtual currencies is that fact that because they have been built on blockchain, they are decentralized in the sense that there is no central bank governing them.

In Brazil, recently they have managed to lower exchange rates in the currency and bullion markets using blockchain. There are exchange startups who are leveraging blockchain based efficient automation processes to lower exchange rates.

Because of its existing nature of application, blockchain has been at the forefront of some path breaking innovation done by Fintech startups across the world. Whether it is money transfers, currency exchanges or organizations providing infrastructure and transaction protocols that enables banks to provide financial settlement at lower rates, Blockchain is driving new age innovations across the Fintech landscape.

In fact, we at PayTabs have been working on Blockchain as well. We are currently in the process of developing a payment distribution system using Blockchain.

To understand the full scope and power of the payment solution that we offer, you are most welcome to sign up for a free demo. Moreover, please feel free to comment below if you have any questions or any insights.

Bahrain: An Early Adopter of Fintech

Bahrain: An Early Adopter of Fintech

As wisdom suggests, regulations are useful when it works. Regulations should enable the economy and not prove to be a hindrance for economic development. Any country which is serious about letting a new industry mushroom and grow, it must create an environment that helps startups and entrepreneurship. Whether it is Silicon Valley or Singapore, favorable business regulations made both these places global hubs for technology startups.

The key ingredients for creating a positive environment for entrepreneurs is building ecosystems and friendly regulatory frameworks which makes is easy to do business in a country/region.

Talking of environment, Bahrain has clearly taken a lead when it comes to pushing forth the case for Fintech Startups. In the month of March 2017, The Bahrain Economic Development Board(EDB) signed a deal with Singapore’s Fintech Consortium and UAE’s Trucial Investment Partners to develop a Fintech ecosystem and a regulatory framework.

The kingdom of Bahrain has already established regulatory incubators where Fintech startups can test their business models and their products without any violation of existing financial regulations.

Bahrain is clearly ahead of the curve, when it comes to jumping the Fintech bandwagon earlier than some of its neighbors in the GCC region. Financial services have traditionally been Bahrain’s forte and pride, with many international and local banks having their presence in the island kingdom. However, much of that traditional advantage has been lost to Dubai in recent times. Hence, focusing on Fintech provides the much-needed momentum to Bahrain’s financial services industry.

As a testimony to the ease of doing business in Bahrain, we take pride in the fact that we have our operational head office in Bahrain. Not to mention, the favorable regulations and government support has enabled us to scale our operations.

6 Factors Driving Indian E-Commerce

6 Factors Driving Indian E-Commerce

The Indian E-commerce scene has exploded in recent times, with many different segments being created by niche players, with the most nascent being Foodtech. India has come a long way with respect to e-commerce and the evolution has been really rapid, befitting the world’s fastest growing large economy.

The growth of e-commerce is tremendous in Indian context, considering that traditionally India has been a cash oriented economy with offline retail stores driving purchases by the consumer. Currently, India adds 6 million new consumers* to the e-commerce industry, every month. This scale of growth is unprecedented in any other market and goes to show the potential of the Indian e-commerce market.

The following key drivers of Indian e-commerce are almost unique to India, as some of these points are intrinsic to Indian consumer behavior:

  • Convenience & Trust: It took some time for e-commerce players to gain the trust of the consumer and shed the initial belief that products available at some of the largest online marketplaces were used products. This is because for a long time, the Indian e-commerce space was dominated by e-bay which used to sell used products in India, operating in a marketplace environment. However, as prominent players entered the market backed by a solid supply chain and great marketing & communications, the quintessential Indian consumer realized the convenience of e-commerce and developed a trust with the portal.

 

  • Price: A typical Indian buyer is very price conscious and bargains heavily. They are always looking out for deals. This perception is widely regarded as being true. Price has always been the trump card for Indian e-commerce players as most of the products that are available online are cheaper than the same products available offline.

 

  • Payment Options: With the advent of digital wallets and UPI (Unified Payments Interface), the payment options have grown over the years. Earlier on, most e-commerce players grew because of the success of the Cash on Delivery (COD) model, which was rather prevalent in India, due to a large amount of Cash being circulated in the economy. It is only in recent times, due to the demonetization drive, Indians have jumped on to the electronic payments bandwagon.

 

  • Digital India: The government of India’s Digital India initiative has been a key factor in enhancing internet penetration across the country, which has led to a whole host of services being digitally delivered. The invariable result of increase in internet penetration has been the fact that apart from accessing essential services digitally, the consumer has taken to online shopping and online payments, big time.

 

  • Domestic Consumption: Any world renowned economist will tell you that the India growth story has been driven by domestic demand and the high consumption of the ever aspirational Indian consumer. The obvious macroeconomic scenario had to play out in the e-commerce space as well.

 

  • Language: Most e-commerce portals in India are in English and that has played a big role in the growth of the industry, as India has the largest English speaking middle class population. Moreover, the regional language versions of popular sites have nonetheless played a critical role in the growth of large scale e-commerce portals.

Despite the growth of Indian e-commerce, much remains to be tapped in terms of SMEs (Small & Medium Enterprises) hopping onto the online space and selling internationally, as in exporters. PayTabs can help you make the online shift and help your business go global. Now, it is easy to receive online global payments. Explore now and Sign up for a free demo!

*Data Source: Wikipedia

Currencies Form the Core of Payments

Currencies Form the Core of Payments

It’s a no-brainer! Everybody out there knows that to buy or sell any product or service through any medium, one would need a transacting currency. The status quo on most transactions, whether online or offline, is the fact that you would need to pay in the currency of the country where you are buying the product from, even if it is online.

But, with the advent of global e-commerce, the status quo on currencies while transacting becomes a deterrent. It is largely due to the willingness of most payments solution providers not to deal with the cumbersome regulations in place in most countries which provide a hindrance for multi-currency payments being made online.

It is not as much as a regulation problem, as it is a regulatory acceptance problem. Most regulators, as in central banks haven’t yet figured out a way to regulate payments in foreign currencies made in multiple currencies through the digital medium. Barring the most accepted currency, i.e. the US Dollar, which is largely used as a de-facto foreign exchange currency across the world, regulators are mostly wary about international payments made in other currencies, especially online.

Having said that, most developed countries and a few forward looking emerging economies have updated their regulations to allow for payments in multiple currencies. However, contrary to popular belief, there aren’t many providers in the market, who possess a seamless global payments processor.

PayTabs has always been ahead of the curve in terms of innovation and one of our key differentiating factor is the fact that we accept 160+ currencies on our platform.

To learn more about our payments platform, click here. Moreover, if you are interested, you can sign up for a free demo as well.

We encourage you to comment on this post, by providing your insights and viewpoints.