SERM 2022 to discuss investment opportunities in virtual assets

Sharjah FDI Office (Invest in Sharjah) has announced that the Sharjah Economic Ramadan Majlis (SERM) will return for its eighth edition on Tuesday (April 19) at the House of Wisdom at 21:00 - 23:00, with the theme ‘Emerging Opportunities in Virtual Investments’.

To be held in the presence of Sheikha Bodour Bint Sultan Al Qasimi, Chairperson of Sharjah Investment and Development Authority (Shurooq), the Majlis will bring together officials from local and federal governments, diplomatic missions and industry leaders in an open forum to discuss recent reforms and strategies aimed at accelerating the UAE’s economic competitiveness, particularly in context of future prospects in virtual investments.

Invest in Sharjah’s selection of the upcoming edition’s discussion theme is a timely response to the current investment boom in the virtual assets market, which is already exhibiting promising prospects of sky-high returns with the rapid and widespread adoption of cryptocurrencies and non-fungible tokens (NFTs) as well as major advancements in digital infrastructure and encryption technology.

The UAE is set to become a global centre of virtual asset trading. The recently issued Virtual Asset Regulation Law, enforced by the Virtual Asset Regulatory Authority (VARA), has introduced a legal framework to protect investors and regulate the industry with a view to facilitating the long-term integration of digital assets into the economy. As a hub for emerging sectors, Sharjah in particular, exhibits the potential to be an attractive destination for foreign companies operating in the sector.

The previous edition of the Sharjah Economic Ramadan Majlis, held in 2021, focused on the stimulus packages instituted by the UAE government in response to the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic. Experts and decision makers from all sectors, including business leaders who derived lessons from the 2008 financial crisis, convened to assess the potential impact of the pandemic on the future of businesses and offer recommendations to mitigate challenges.

Meanwhile a dialogue led by the Sharjah FDI Office (Invest in Sharjah) to inform the global business and investment communities about future opportunities in the emirate.

Titled ‘Investment Opportunities In Sharjah’, the panel discussion was led by senior representatives of the emirate’s government departments, including Sheikh Fahim Al Qasimi, Chairman of the Department of Government Relations (DGR), Sharjah; Mohamed Juma Al Musharrkh, CEO of Invest in Sharjah; Dr. Abdulaziz Al Muhairi, Director-General of Sharjah Health Authority; Hussain Al Mahmoudi, CEO of the Sharjah Research, Technology and Innovation (SRTI) Park; and Shihab Alhammadi, Director of the Sharjah Media City (Shams).

Moderated by Matthew Stephenson, Policy and Community Lead, International Trade and Investment at the World Economic Forum (WEF), the discussion focused on the key pillars of digitisation, resiliency and sustainability that are supporting Sharjah’s future growth across sectors. The speakers also turned the spotlight on the emirate’s competitive advantages and investor-friendly environment, and opined that healthcare, transport & logistics, agritech and fintech are among key sectors that will drive next generation of foreign direct investments in Sharjah.

Explaining the role of cultural diplomacy in forging business partnerships with likeminded nations and cities, Sheikh Fahim noted, “In the world we live in, megatrends of digitisation, sustainability, etc., are just abstracts, and when you start drilling down into what that means for a government, you realise that there is a lot of hard work that needs to follow. We need to understand economically, environmentally and socially, how every bit of policy we issue will be received by both the nationals and residents of Sharjah, and how it will be seen by partners – whether investors or countries we work with.

“At DGR, we look at forming partnerships through projects that help us promote cultural and human values important for Sharjah. For instance, when we worked on a project with the Vatican Museum, a key priority for us was to promote interfaith tolerance. So, we developed the first big cross-faith exhibition that was ever unveiled in a third country – in Australia in 2018.

WAM