The inaugural edition of 24 Fintech, a KSA government-backed fintech exhibition and summit, will take place in the city of Riyadh from September 3-5, 2024.

The event, which is expected to happen annually, is hosted by the Financial Sector Development Program (FSDP), a program by Saudi’s Council of Economic and Development Affairs (CEDA) that is catered towards Vision 2030; Saudi Central Bank (SAMA), a government banking services platform; Capital Market Authority (CMA), a government entity that regulate and develop Saudi Arabia’s capital market; and Insurance Authority (IA), the Kingdom’s official the insurance regulator.

24 Fintech is also co-organised by Fintech Saudi, a platform that promotes and supports KSA’s fintech industry, and Tahaluf, a Saudi-based global events management company that is a collaborative venture between Informa PLC, the Saudi Federation for Cybersecurity, Programming and Drones (SAFCSP), and the Events Investment Fund (EIF).

Scheduled to take place at the Riyadh Front Exhibition and Conference Centre, the three-day event will combine both an exhibition and a summit, with the latter expected to feature over 175 hours of expert-led content. The exhibition, on the other hand, will showcase a week-long series of events -including industry gatherings and brand activations- from September 1-6, 2024.

Created with a mission to put a spotlight on Saudi Arabia’s global fintech ambitions as well as its commitment to becoming a tech-driven international financial powerhouse, 24 Fintech has a singular objective at its crux: to become the most influential and impactful fintech business event, platform, and community across Asia, Europe, and MENA.

“Our vision is to drive forward finance by bringing together essential stakeholders and propelling practical, worldwide transformation in alignment with the economic development agenda laid out in Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030,” said Annabelle Mander, Senior Vice President of Tahaluf, in a statement.

According to initial estimations by Tahaluf, more than 26,000 attendees, 300 exhibitors, 80 fintech startups, and over 200 investors are expected to be a part of the conference. Additionally, over 200 international industry experts–many already confirmed to be from globally established firms such as Standard Chartered, Citi Group, Barclays, HSBC, S&P, Arthur D Little, Swift & Ripple, and the Monetary Authority of Hong Kong–will be speaking at the event to address relevant industry topics such as how to navigating the immense technological changes that impact financial operations, right from infrastructure provision to client servicing.

The inaugural edition of 24 Fintech will therefore have four stages which will feature keynotes, panel discussions, as well as new industry announcements, with specific stage areas dedicated to investment and startups, technology, and academia. Across the various stages, experts will probe a host of themes including governance, regulations, interoperability, investment and reimagining the financial services landscape.

Additionally, the event will also host special initiatives such as the Regulators’ Village, a dedicated zone connecting regulators and fintechs who aspire to set up operations in the Kingdom, and Venturescape, an initiative that will bring together 200+ global investors and 100+ fintech companies for a series of workshops pitch practice sessions.

Moreover, a startup zone at 24 Fintech will showcase 80 global fintech companies, across all major verticals including, but not limited to, payments, lending, insurtech, regtech, capital markets, compliance and open banking. Within this particular zone, up and coming startups will be able to avail tailored mentorship and matchmaking sessions as well as a 24 Fintech pitch competition, which see more than SAR900,000 (US$250,000+) given out in equity free awards.

The 24 Fintech event will thus convene regulators, financial services professionals, policy makers, investors, and academics, while simultaneously offering a platform for global industry stakeholders to start conversations on how to create a collaborative fintech transformation. For more information about the event, click here.

Related: How the Saudi Government Has Streamlined The Kingdom for Fintech