16 February 2022 www.bahrainthismonth.com fintech feature BAHRAIN’S FINTECH HUB Bahrain This Month speaks to CEO of Bahrain FinTech Bay, Khalid Dannish, about the Kingdom’s FinTech industry, the potential for Bahrainis in the field and the accomplishments of the incubator to-date. There’s no denying that technology plays a vital role in our daily lives. With the dawn of the pandemic, the need for technology grew tenfold with its increased application in every aspect. This extended further to the world of FinTech which was propelled to new heights as the need for integration of technology in the finance industry grew. In the Kingdom of Bahrain, the FinTech industry thrived as established companies ventured into modernising and advancing their operations while innovative startups brought life to their concepts. Leading FinTech Hub in the Middle East, Bahrain FinTech Bay, has proved to be an invaluable incubator for the industry in Bahrain. The ecosystem has thrived under the guidance of CEO of Bahrain FinTech Bay, Khalid Dannish. “I really cut my teeth in London and the investment banking world at the height of the financial crisis. So, I could say I›m used to a challenge and really, I’ve always gravitated towards roles that were in the investment banking space and also roles that sit between technology and business,” says Mr. Dannish, who took on the role in February of 2020, right on the heels of the pandemic. Despite spending a majority of his professional and personal life between the UK and Bahrain, the opportunity to be part of the founding team that develops an authentic FinTech ecosystem in Bahrain was compelling enough for Mr. Dannish to return to the Kingdom’s shores. “It was a no brainer for me to move back and be a part of this exciting journey,” he says. A Growing Industry in Bahrain The Kingdom of Bahrain is currently home to around 100 FinTechs while around 200 startups are operational in the broader technology field. “A majority of them are fairly young companies, so each one of them employs five to ten people. However, we do have some large-scale companies that employ over 150 people at a time, typically mostly Bahrainis as well,” explains Mr. Dannish. The number of people currently employed in the FinTech industry has been growing steadily around the world with Bahrain being no exception. “If you look at the FinTech ecosystem at large, you have to not only consider the entrepreneurs employed within Fintech but those involved in corporate FinTech solutions or government entities… the whole plethora of roles involved,” he says. «So, when thinking about how many people are currently employed in Bahrain’s FinTech industry, it’s hard to put a number on it; I would, however, say that it’s in the thousands when you consider all the stakeholders in the ecosystem,” he adds. The Role of Bahrain FinTech Bay “Our broad mandate was to establish a FinTech
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy Mjk0MTkxMQ==