The UAE set a target of 90% cashless transactions by the end of this year — and we are almost there. But going cashless is not just a lifestyle shift. It means someone has to write the rules for how money moves, who controls it, and who gets left behind. Joining me is Gaurav Dhar, CEO and Founder of The WorxShop and Board Member of MFTA. Gaurav, welcome back to Wall Street to Mena.
Thank you so much for having me. It is always a pleasure to be here.
When did the cashless tipping point actually happen for you personally?
The cost of providing technology has an expense to it and you need to recoup that cost. When the cost of that technology hit a certain level of critical mass, it became effectively viable in all cases. When it came to the point of being able to have a card machine for smaller payments — ten dirhams, five dirhams — the unit economics surprised me. When you see that moment personally, you understand that the technology has reached a level of saturation or critical mass which is great for this ecosystem.
What actually had to be built and regulated behind the scenes to make it work?
There are three parts of the ecosystem — issuing, acquiring, and processing — and there are different businesses created from each side. They have to work in tandem with each other all the time and in step. So there has to be coordination of all these businesses working with the central bank. Whether it is Network International as an acquirer, or Emerson BD issuing cards — many different players need to be actively promoting their services for each part of acceptance, issuing, and processing to take place. Those coming together have been well fuelled by the regulator's support.
Did the UAE get here because of regulation or despite the banks?
There is a duality to this story. There was a thirst for technology in the UAE because leadership at government and country level had the objective of mandating that technology should be front and centre. So there was technology driven from a leadership perspective and regulation followed very quickly in step. It has been both — well coordinated, much like we have seen ecosystems in Singapore looking keenly at how they can service not only businesses but the residents to keep them there. It was definitely with regulation, but also with the leadership of the UAE.
Now that cash is almost gone — who controls the rails that replace it?
It is always going to be the government and the regulator that has overarching control of infrastructure. You can have conduits of businesses — all these service providers allowing us to take and make payments — but it is really going to be the government. We are learning from places like India where they have developed things like UPI and NPCI. We are taking the best of those and adopting them here. The UAE is a younger country relative to the United States or India, which are older and more seasoned in use case scenarios. We are taking the best in class of service, technology, and regulation.
Stablecoins, open finance, digital dirhams — multiple versions of digital money are competing in the UAE. Is regulation keeping up?
I think regulation is actually ahead. There are instances where companies from an infrastructure perspective are already processing billions — but it may not be obvious to you and me every day. The space that is obvious and visible may appear crowded, but there is a lot of genuine opportunity for the speed of transactions, the new types of transactions we can do with data-driven decision making, and the number of players outside of traditional finance who can now step in and provide these services. It might look crowded but it is actually a first mover advantage now.
What is the one thing you keep pushing for when it comes to regulations and policy?
I am in danger of sounding like a broken record, but I always have to say — passports. A GCC financial passport, much like how the EU allows freedom of movement of goods, services, people, and money. Once we strengthen these corridors between ecosystems, it is going to be absolutely transformative. A business like Fils might be able to IPO in three years based on volume with a comprehensive GCC corridor passport for finance and technology — without it, it might take three to four years longer. Passport is something I genuinely believe is going to allow all these ecosystems to flourish, not just the UAE.
Ten years from now — what does money look like?
Programmable money and cohesive data will allow people to lend at different levels. The numbers and level at which credit is now enabling smaller and smaller businesses to have operational cash flow means more jobs, more people trying to generate more businesses, more people able to buy. When money flows through on data, you have more confident investors. You are going to see a genuine shift in the volume of money that travels from one ecosystem into another, and the way we can grow our own economies locally. It is going to be super exciting.
Thank you so much for joining us again today.
Thank you. My pleasure as always.
