Bridging North America and MENA: How Fintech Firms Can Unlock Growth Across Borders

And welcome back.

So we know that the world of digital assets in FinTech, it is creating a lot of movement across the globe.

But now bridging uh the companies in North America and the UAE together, well, that is a hefty task.

So to talk a little bit more about that and how that bridge is happening, we're here with Michael O’Loughlin, U.S.

Ambassador for the MENA Fintech Association and Managing Partner at Argonautic Global.

Well, thanks so much for having us and uh thank you for, for joining us.

How are you today?

I'm great.

It's good to be up bright and early here on the floor.

I know it's early.

It is 7:40 in the morning, so I appreciate you coming here.

So let's talk about the Mina FinTech space.

It's been moving fast like we were just talking off, uh, off-air.

So from, uh, from Dubai to the US to Cairo, a lot of different movements.

So what are you, where are you seeing most of the meaningful growth right now and what's driving it?

Right, well, I think, uh, first of all, the Nina FinTech Association, what we're trying to do is effectively become this fintech compass for companies on the outside of the Middle East, North Africa, who may be feeling a little bit demystified as to what's actually happening on the ground.

What we're seeing is an awful lot of capital flowing out of the Middle East, traditionally funding innovation, but now there's an awful lot of foreign direct investment in fintech in the Middle East.

So Saudi Arabia building ecosystems to buy.

Abu Dhabi, UAE in total, you're now you just mentioned, the central bank in, for example, in Egypt.

They're doing a lot of great innovation work as well.

So, let's talk about, uh, there's a real appetite on both sides.

We have North American capital looking at the Middle East and Mina founders eyeing the US market.

So what's the biggest friction point still standing in the way of these cross-border deals?

I think it's as old as time.

It's an awful lot of smoke and mirrors in the past, but what we look at right now, it's American companies going into the Middle East, um, often.

What was missing was people on the ground who can actually help them navigate, who's the regulator, who's the investors, you know, who do they need to talk to.

But then on the other side, as these companies are starting to think like unicorns in the Middle East, these organically grown new companies, they need help coming across to the United States.

And I think that's a chasm that that needs to be a bridge, effectively that needs to be closed up.

And that's what we're trying to help.

Let's talk about there's, there's a lot of, uh, viewpoints, you know, especially in North America.

There, there's some sentiment about, all right, like, you know, what is it like?

There's a little bit of a mystery when it comes to like doing business and the UE unless, you know, you've been there.

So what are you seeing most, especially nowadays that companies are, uh, I guess not knowledgeable of, and when they get there, what is their biggest surprise.

Well, as an Irishman, my, my, I went there a few years ago and um my, the shock factor was the heat.

I think everyone will tell you that.

Um, but uh, the overwhelming message I would say is that it's very welcoming.

It's very welcoming because um people are very keen for you to understand the culture there.

And the culture is different in every country.

And I think that's something that is kind of blurred.

The messaging up until now.

There's some rich cultures, great food, great people, um, great belief systems that you actually need to plug into and understand.

That's why you need boots on the ground, people who actually are living it.

I went, I lived there in Saudi Arabia for many years, worked in Dubai, worked in Saudi Arabia, and this is something that I learned is that being there, pressing the flesh, shaking the hands, drinking tea with people really adds the value.

So, let's talk uh about something, AI in financial services, uh, but we're in the single tool phase right now.

How are you seeing institutions start to connect these systems and what does it look like in practice?

Well, I think worldwide we're seeing that it's kind of moving from AI moving from tools to systems.

And if you look at what's happened up until now, and I would say this in financial services specifically, there've been many tools used and effectively that's damaged the data within underneath the hood.

If you picture a car analogy.

Uh, so what we're imagining happening in the next, probably the next year or two is an awful lot of people are going to start asking about accountability around governance.

Around the regulation piece.

And we're seeing an awful lot of countries in the Middle East really start to lead in regulation, because they're realizing that with a solid foundation of rules, people can play by the rules and then be as competitive as they want on top of that.

So, another big thing is tokenization.

Now that has been coming up in conversations all around.

So are Are we still in a proof of concept stage, or are we seeing more real infrastructures being built around digital assets, specifically in the region?

All right, so in the region, I will say risk was everything.

It still is, it remains that if you have one of the fastest growing GDPs in the world, you're going to want to be risk averse.

Um, but as regards Tokenization of let's say real world assets, let's say property, things like this, we're seeing a huge uptake, especially in Dubai, and now some new regulations in Saudi Arabia, for example.

So let's talk about innovation.

It moves fast, uh, but trust and regulation also have to keep that pace going.

So how do governments and private players, uh, actually build that together rather than one chasing the other one around?

Yeah, people say, everyone says that, you know, regulation stifles innovation.

I think what we're seeing and witnessing with the Mina FinTech Association is that it's only with true collaboration, and it's not limited, by the way, to innovators and Institutions or regulators.

It's also investors as well.

So bring them around the table and give them a safe space to be creative, to maybe get a little bit vocal and actually get their ideas out there.

That's why we've created subgroups across those different topics that you just mentioned, AI, tokenization, digital assets, open finance.

I mean, it's a long list, but each thing has its own specialist in whether it's a regulator.

An investor, an inventor, so to speak, and these, these folks don't often necessarily get a chance to meet.

So that's what we're trying to do.

So, let's talk a little bit about the Mina FinTech Association, and it sits, it sits at such a unique intersection because you have founders, you have investors, regulators, and then you have institutions.

So, how do you keep all these voices at the table without losing focus on what is actually moving the needle nowadays?

I think one, that's a very good question, by the way.

I think uh one of the things, having your finger on the pulse sounds great, but you really need to walk the corridors of these institutions and then you need Ambassadors from these institutions and startups and regulators and investors, you need a representative to attend the events that you're having.

They're not all social events.

Some of them are, but we've even gone into sports events and also the subgroups I mentioned earlier, having people participate from those different sectors is really crucial to actually having a successful output.

So traditionally, I think I mentioned this off air, the Middle East has been known as providing the capital for innovation.

And the US naturally has a fantastic capital markets background.

It is a fantastic innovation set up here.

But now we're starting to see that the innovation is taking place in the Middle East and that they're doing that in combination with regulation.

That's one of the things.

So let's talk about the growth of the Mina FinTech Association in the last 5 years, 10 years.

Let's talk about the beginnings and where you guys are nowadays, because I mean we were talking off-air and it's definitely, it went from something small, a couple of guys meeting up to this thing where the government's like.

Hey, you know, we have to get organized, so let's talk about that.

Yeah, I think we're coming from an attitude of gratitude, I would say here, humble beginnings.

It's about 10 years ago I met Namir Khan, so kudos to Namir.

He's the chairman.

He is based in Dubai, and we met in Istanbul in Turkey of all places, on the streets after a conference, and he told me about this big dream he had of connecting people.

He said that there's just We need something virtual.

We need something physical.

And uh he went and he created this, and I was one of the first members to sign up with my company to be the startup section.

But then he went and plugged into the Central Bank of UAE and they attended, and then they hosted us as well.

I think that's fantastic.

So let's talk a little bit about the companies that are actually joining nowadays.

What are you seeing in regards to new companies coming in and where exactly is the association kind of seeing, uh, the growth and what sectors?

I think it's a great question.

One of the things that has changed is the maturity of the group, meaning we realized we actually need representation and leadership from these industries, from these different sectors.

So we now have key global organizations, not just limited to the region, who are curious about how do we land, expand, how do we get a license if you're a startup?

Where do we go?

So what we've been doing proactively is, and with the support of the regional governments and regulators is actually signposting.

How do you navigate this complex world, you know, when people say the Middle East, North Africa.

That's a huge place with many, many countries, and one of the things we're trying to do right now is just like me here in the United States, have an ambassador who has lived in the Middle East, who's worked in regulation, consulting, invented things along the way, who can actually help those companies cross that chasm we mentioned earlier.

And I'm definitely interested to hear your thoughts.

So when a business uh is thinking about going to the MINA region, what would you say to them?

What advice would you give them?

Maybe not the advice that everyone gives, but, uh, what I like to do is, I asked the why.

Why do you want to go?

And traditionally it was, well, that's where the capital is, and I have so many great ideas.

I think what we're trying to encourage people to do is, well, think about.

The market there.

Can you sell to the market there?

Because it actually is a big market, the Middle East, North Africa.

So think about how can you localize your products there.

And once you start to really start to think about that, if you're in the West, for example, you start to realize, I'm going to need to talk to some people.

People over there to localize our products or maybe create a brand new product.

But to do that, you really need to understand what are the regulations of the day over there.

How is business done over there.

So I would engage, engage with this website, for example, that we have, Minafintech.org, but also get on the phone, speak to people.

You'd be really surprised how welcoming regulators are in this space, how consulting companies are in this space.

It's not all.

The money grab.

It's genuine, genuinely, people are proud, expats included.

They're really proud to talk about their experience, a bit like myself here today.

And the last question is, overall, I mean, when uh businesses go to the MIA region, uh, what is the biggest surprise as a business that they encounter when they come from North America?

So it varies.

I will say it's a good question.

I think um if you're a multinational company, you will be greeted with, you know, incentives, and there will be some, I, I would say some breaks, tax breaks along the way, depending on the country you wish to set up.

So naturally, bottom line is everything for a large corporation.

If you're a startup, one of the things you'll realize quickly is.

Communities build ecosystems, and if you're going to be part of an ecosystem, you can go in looking through the lens that capital matters, you know, that regulation matters, that technology matters, but really it's the community and plugging into that properly is essential.

Awesome.

Well, Mike, thanks so much for joining us.

It's definitely a pleasure to have you here so early too.

So thank you for doing the trip here.

I know, uh, it's exciting and there's a lot of awesome things happening in the region and a lot of companies here definitely wanna take advantage of what's going on there.

So thank you for your time.

Thank you very much.

And of course we're gonna take a short break.

So more ahead.

Stay with us.