The FinTech World Cup (FWC) grand finale, held in partnership with the Dubai FinTech Summit (DFS), VISA, Emirates NBD, and Amazon Web Services (AWS), saw a remarkable USD 9.25 million in investments committed to start-ups. This milestone event brought together 15 finalists from around the world, including Audax, Xaults Technologies, and Monak E-Services, who pitched their innovative ideas to a room full of global investors.

The intense competition culminated in APPRO emerging as the winner, securing a USD 500,000 investment commitment on the spot. Other start-ups, such as Finix196 and Validus, also received significant investment commitments from Dhruv Management and Aum Ventures, respectively.

Mohammed Saleem, Founder and Chairman of Trescon, expressed his excitement about hosting the FWC grand finale at the Dubai FinTech Summit, emphasizing the creation of a unique platform for FinTech innovation. He also committed to investing in some of the start-ups, including the USD 500,000 for the FWC grand finale winner, APPRO.

Naveen Bharadwaj, Group CEO of Trescon, highlighted the FinTech World Cup as an opportunity to address real-world challenges through collaboration and capital. In addition to the announced investments, the winner and first two runner-ups will gain access to mentorship, Trescon Credits, and Amazon credits, enhancing their resources for growth and development.

The FWC jury consisted of distinguished professionals from the FinTech industry, including Nasir Zubairi, Hugo Bongers, and Sara Tabana. The 2nd edition of the Dubai FinTech Summit was supported by global corporate partners, including VISA, Emirates NBD, Etisalat, and Commercial Bank of Dubai. Dubai FinTech Summit is an annual mega event organized by the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), the leading global financial centre in the Middle East, Africa, and South Asia region.

The summit signals a new wave of financial innovation, opportunity, transformation, and growth for the international financial services sector. As a rising FinTech hub, Dubai is spearheading the evolution of the financial services industry, with investments in FinTech projected to grow by 17.2 per cent CAGR to USD 949 billion from 2022 to 2030.