Money20/20 Middle East Day Three Charts Roadmap to Innovative, Agile, Scalable and Stable Financial Future for Saudi Arabia

Money20/20 Middle East concluded in Riyadh with major developments for Saudi Arabia’s payments ecosystem announced by the Saudi Central Bank (SAMA), new investment announcements and the crowning of the MoneySurge winners, as the three-day event brought together regulators and industry leaders to examine the next phase of the Kingdom’s financial ecosystem.

Nora M. Albakr, Deputy Governor for Financial Innovation at the Saudi Central Bank (SAMA), opened the final day of Money20/20 Middle East with a keynote examining the future of Saudi Arabia’s financial ecosystem and the role of responsible innovation in supporting its continued development.

She highlighted SAMA’s role within the ambitions of Saudi Vision 2030, emphasising the importance of preserving monetary and financial stability while enabling the financial system to adopt innovation at greater speed and scale. Her remarks underscored that stability and innovation are complementary, with a strong and resilient financial system providing the foundation needed for innovation to deliver sustainable, long-term value.

The Deputy Governor also outlined SAMA’s approach to emerging financial technologies, centred on testing and evidence before wider adoption and regulatory decisions. She stressed the importance of prioritising innovation that demonstrates practical value and meaningful potential for the broader financial system, rather than pursuing technology for its own sake.

As an example of this approach in practice, she highlighted SAMA’s regulatory sandbox testing of supply chain finance solutions and the subsequent progression towards licensing. Supply chain finance activity has since exceeded SAR 1.4 billion, demonstrating how regulatory testing can provide a structured pathway for proven financial innovations to move towards wider market adoption.

The final day also brought further investment announcements and partnerships reflecting continued international interest in Saudi Arabia’s financial technology market.

Lendo, a Shariah-compliant debt crowdfunding marketplace in Saudi Arabia, announced a partnership with Quantic Financial Solutions GmbH, an asset management fund headquartered in Vienna, Austria. Under the agreement, Quantic will invest in an institutional capital programme of up to SAR 750 million dedicated to working capital financing for SMEs in the Kingdom.

Meanwhile, Speedinvest, a European venture capital firm, announced a SAR 15 million investment in Abwab.ai, an AI-powered credit intelligence and underwriting automation platform, marking its first investment in Saudi Arabia.

Across the final-day programme, industry leaders examined how payments, digital assets and artificial intelligence are reshaping financial services, from increasingly interconnected payment ecosystems and always-on capital markets to questions around trust, accountability and human oversight in financial AI.

During the session “What Comes After Payments”, speakers explored how increasingly interconnected financial services are changing the relationship between payments, customer data and the wider financial ecosystem.

Tony Ashraf, Managing Director at BlackRock, said: “When markets genuinely don’t close and everything operates 24/7, that will have a fundamental impact on capital markets. As money and underlying assets move around the clock, it creates demand for 24/7 yield, and that convergence will be one of the key drivers of change across capital markets.”

The role of trust and human accountability in the adoption of artificial intelligence was also examined during “Can I Trust You with My Money? The Psychology of Financial AI”, with speakers considering how financial institutions can balance the growing capabilities of AI with transparency, reliability and appropriate human oversight.

Afzal Hussain Mohammed Nakheeb, Founder & Chairman of T57.AI, said balance is critical, adding: “AI should advise us and provide the right information, but humans should use that information to make wiser decisions. We should not hand over decisions entirely to AI; there must be human involvement in evaluating the information, making the final decision and maintaining accountability.”

The closing segment was led by Abdulaziz S. Abanmi, Deputy Governor for Payments at the Saudi Central Bank (SAMA), who reflected on the developments and discussions that had shaped the three-day event and highlighted its role in bringing together the financial ecosystem around the opportunities ahead.

The event closed with further developments for Saudi Arabia’s payments ecosystem, as SAMA announced the enablement of Alipay+ payment acceptance in the Kingdom and plans to enable Apple’s Tap to Pay on iPhone in Saudi Arabia.

The enablement of Alipay+ payment acceptance will allow international visitors to make seamless and secure payments in Saudi Arabia using their existing digital wallets, further expanding the payment options available across the Kingdom. SAMA also announced plans to enable Apple’s Tap to Pay on iPhone in Saudi Arabia, allowing merchants to securely and conveniently accept contactless payments directly on iPhone.

In his closing remarks, Abanmi said the developments highlighted over the course of Money20/20 Middle East reflected the Kingdom’s clear vision and continued investment in infrastructure and human capabilities. He also pointed to the strong collaboration across the ecosystem between regulators, financial institutions, the business community, technology entrepreneurs and innovators, noting that Saudi Arabia is not simply keeping pace with developments, but is building the foundations, enabling the tools and creating the opportunities that will shape the future of the financial sector.

The three-day event concluded with the winners of MoneySurge crowned, bringing an intense competition among next-generation fintech innovators to a close.

Following a final presentation round and scrutiny from an expert panel of judges, Hong Kong-based  Planto, which provides cash flow insights, customer segmentation, and wealth analytics for financial institutions, claimed the ‘Fintech to Watch’ award and a prize of USD 100,000.

Jessica Liu, Co-Founder & CEO, Planto, said: “Money 20/20 Middle East has been an amazing experience and a great opportunity to connect with innovative technology companies from around the world. As Planto expands into Saudi Arabia, we’re excited to work with banks and financial institutions and contribute to the ambitions of Vision 2030.”

Nigerian fintech Nearpays was awarded the 'Fintech for Good’ honour and USD 100,000. Nearpays is a digital financial and payment platform that provides virtual accounts, virtual dollar cards, and smartphone-based virtual PO.

Victor Daniyan, CEO & Co founder of Nearpays, said: “Money20/20 Middle East has given us a valuable opportunity to connect with potential collaborators, payment companies and organisations that we can partner with as we continue to grow. It has also introduced Nearpays to new audiences and potential customers, creating opportunities to showcase our solutions and explore new markets.”

With competition tough among the eight finalists, the ultimate winner of “Best in Show,” and USD 200,000, was Saudi Arabian company Tanami, a Shariah-compliant private markets investment platform.

After receiving the award, Nawaf Al Maskati, Co-Founder & CEO Tanami, said: “This is Tanami’s second year participating in Money20/20 Middle East, and once again it has been an incredible experience. Being part of the competition has given us the opportunity to share Tanami’s story and ambitions with a wider audience. Winning this prize will support our growth and expansion across Saudi Arabia and, ultimately, into regional markets. It is also a strong validation of our ambition to transform the investment landscape and broaden access to opportunities across the region.”

Annabelle Mander, Executive Vice President at Tahaluf, said: "What stands out after three days is how much the conversation around Saudi Arabia has moved on. There is obviously huge interest in the market, but increasingly the conversations are about what companies are going to do here, who they are going to work with and where they see the opportunities to grow. At the same time, through Money Surge we have seen a new generation of founders coming through, with ideas and businesses that could become part of what this industry looks like next. That combination is really exciting. Money20/20 Middle East should keep growing with the market and give both established global players and the next generation of companies a place to build relationships, find opportunities and be part of where finance goes next

Money20/20 Middle East will return for its third edition at Riyadh Exhibition & Convention Centre in Malham from 14 – 16 September 2027.

Registration and further information are available at www.money2020middleeast.com.