Inayat-ur-Rahman, Business Editor

Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, said the vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE, and Ruler of Dubai, to make Dubai the city of the future had helped it become a destination of choice to host events that help address global challenges, improve people’s lives, and keep pace with rapid technological advancements.

Sheikh Hamdan made the remarks during his tour of the 42nd edition of Gitex Global in Dubai on Friday.

“Thanks to the vision and directives of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid, Dubai has emerged as a global platform where ideas and innovations collaborate to shape a brighter future.

“The 42nd edition of Gitex Global was the largest in the event’s history, with 5,000 exhibitors, of which 1,400 were new.”

“The event was attended by more than 138,000 delegates and visitors, underscoring Dubai’s status as a major global tech hub, unlocking development opportunities across various sectors. Dubai has transformed into a global laboratory where bright minds collaborate and compete to find solutions to serve humanity and address challenges for a brighter future,” Sheikh Hamdan said.

During the tour,  Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mohammed was accompanied by Sheikh Maktoum Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai, and Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance of the UAE. They toured the pavilions of several companies and were briefed about cutting-edge technology solutions and digital products on display at the event.

He toured the pavilions of Abu Dhabi’s Technology Innovation Institute, where he was briefed about the latest technologies that underline the UAE’s competencies in driving homegrown innovation. His Highness was also informed about how the XR UAV Control demonstrates the potential of ultra-reliable communications.

He also visited Abu Dhabi-based G42 Group, where he was briefed about the company’s AI and cloud computing services. He also visited the pavilion of Chinese tech firm XPENG, where he was briefed on the company’s latest generation of flying cars developed independently by XPENG AEROHT, which made its first public flight on the sidelines of Gitex.

His visit included the pavilion of the General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs-Dubai, where he was briefed about the latest tech solutions and services deployed by the Directorate.

FTX Exchange: FTX Exchange, the Middle East division of global crypto exchange platform FTX, was the first Virtual Asset Service Provider (VASP) to receive the MVP license to operate its virtual asset (VA) exchange and clearing house services from Dubai’s Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA). “This is part of our go-to market strategy in the region, working within the regulatory framework set up by VARA, and because FTX has a strong portfolio of institutional clients globally. We have a well-established reputation in the market amongst institutional investors as we are the most regulated exchange in the international market,” said Mohammad Hans Dastmaltchi, Chairman of the Board of FTX Exchange, who was one of the keynote speakers at the recently concluded Gitex  Global event held at the Dubai World Trade Center.

 According to Dastmaltchi, there is a strong appetite amongst institutional investors here in the UAE, from across a broad range of business sectors, such as finance, hospitality and real estate to name just a few. “As soon as we announced we were opening an office in Dubai, and were licensed to operate, we were inundated with inquiries. With regulatory frameworks now being established, institutional players are more interested to get on board and what you get from institutional investors, as opposed to retail investors, is a lot more stability in terms of investment. They have a long-term outlook which sucks out the volatility that we are seeing now from retail driven investments,” he added.

That said, FTX Exchange CEO Balsam Danhach sees retail investors as part of their overall growth plans. “There is certainly a strong appetite in the market from retail customers as proven by the impressive growth of trade amounting to half a trillion dollars in the past year. So, this is something that we are also keen on tapping into and are confident it will contribute to our growth moving forward. What we want to focus on in the beginning is to establish the system and ensure compliance with the mindset that we are here, working with regulators, to protect customers, whether they are institutional or retail investors,” he explained.

Looking ahead, Danhach sees great potential for Dubai and the UAE to become the hub for digital assets in the MENA region, saying “the talent is here, the infrastructure is well set up, and the funds are available. The region’s young demographic will also be a key factor that will drive growth of digital asset adoption in the future.”

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