ABU DHABI: The third edition of Investopia (Investopia 2024) opened today in the UAE capital, Abu Dhabi, under the theme Emerging Economic Frontiers: Investing in the New Economy Growth Sectors, bringing together prominent local and global business and government leaders, investors, policymakers, economists, entrepreneurs, and representatives of the Future 100 initiative. The latest edition of the event is taking place on 28th and 29th February, featuring panel discussions and keynotes by prominent leaders pioneering their fields into the future in areas such as technology, government, finance, engineering, sustainability and more.
Investopia 2024 was opened by Abdullah bin Touq Al Marri, Minister of Economy and Chairman of Investopia, in the presence of Khaldoon Al Mubarak, Managing Director and CEO of Mubadala Investment Company, Shamsa Al Falasi, CEO of Citibank Group – UAE, and Anthony Scaramucci, Founder and Managing Partner of SkyBridge Capital, several ministers, representatives of participating coun
tries, and investors from around the world.
Bin Touq said, ‘Since its inception, it has been Investopia’s mission to stimulate investment flows in new economic sectors, given their importance as key drivers of sustainable growth of economies around the world. In addition, the platform strives to facilitate the development of sustainable policies and solutions needed to drive global economic growth. The close relationship between the new economy sectors and their reliance on innovation, knowledge, advanced technology and sustainability can help transform today’s challenges into opportunities and innovative ideas into successful future projects. From this standpoint, the UAE is keen to include these sectors in its strategic plans for sustainable economic development.’
‘In line with these directives from its wise leadership, the UAE launched Investopia in the year 2021 to serve as a key pillar in the achievement of its vision to build a more flexible and diversified knowledge economic model. It also forms part
of our efforts to strengthen the country’s position as a global hub for the new economy by the next decade in line with the ‘We the UAE 2031′ vision.’
Investopia strengthens its presence among the business communities
The Minister of Economy added, ‘Over the past years, Investopia has successfully established itself and strengthened its presence among the business communities by successfully forging extensive partnerships with various global investors, asset managers and leading banks.’
‘Today, it has become one of the most prominent global platforms dynamising investments through its distinguished global talks and panel sessions. These were held at the local, regional and international levels, targeting strategic markets of great economic importance. In addition, Investopia concluded partnerships with leading global institutions to exchange experiences on investment opportunities in the new economy. More than 5,000 participants were engaged over the three editions in shaping the future of investments in t
he new economy sectors,’ he noted.
Growing investment opportunities in new economic sectors
Bin Touq continued, ‘The launch of the third edition of Investopia will contribute to the growth and expansion of investment opportunities in the new economic sectors, especially fintech, advanced technologies for the aviation sector, renewable energy, circular economy, green finance, modern technologies used in supply chains and e-commerce.’
The Investopia Chairman pointed out that the latest edition’s agenda focuses on directing investment flows towards promising markets, stimulating capital flows towards sustainable sectors and emerging industries, and examining the growth potential of a low-carbon economy. Moreover, it sheds light on global economic shifts and the need to formulate new policies and solutions to turn them into sustainable future opportunities.
Strengthening Future 100 companies’ dialogue with global investors
Furthermore, Bin Touq pointed out that this year’s edition of Investopia is extraordin
ary as it witnessed the launch of the second edition of the ‘Future 100 initiative,’ a joint initiative between the Ministry of Economy and the Government Development and The Future Office, to foster emerging businesses in future economy sectors. Investopia 2024 is offering a platform for these companies to interact with global investors and learn about the latest trends in the investment landscape.
Three key pillars of Investopia
The three main pillars of Investopia are Investopia Global Talks, Investopia Investment Communities, and Investopia Marketplace. Under Global Talks, discussions and events are held with the participation of business leaders, investors and innovators from around the world to explore the future of the global investment landscape. Meanwhile, the Investopia Investment Communities promotes continuing dialogue between investors and decision-makers in governments and the global private sector in specific economic sectors. Finally, the Investopia Marketplace platforms focuses on connect
ing the heads of investment funds in various parts of the world and provides them with the largest database of investment opportunities.
Bin Touq said, ‘The UAE economy – thanks to the vision of its wise leadership – is taking steady steps towards ensuring sustainable growth and competitiveness, and we are moving closer to achieving the economic goals of the We the UAE 2031 vision, by doubling the country’s GDP to reach AED3 trillion. By the next decade, the UAE will take the number one position globally in the development of proactive legislation for new economic sectors.’ He then explained that there were more than 788,000 companies registered in the UAE by the end of 2023, which contributes to achieving the goal of having one million companies by the year 2031.
In his keynote address, Khaldoon Al Mubarak, Managing Director and CEO of Mubadala Investment Company, elaborated on investment opportunities in the new economy sectors highlighting the importance of economic integration, innovating new investment
methods and smartly responding to the challenges and investment opportunities arising from the recent global economic shifts. Moreover, he reviewed Mubadala’s plans to expand into the sectors of sustainable energy, artificial intelligence, technology, health and digital infrastructure.
Anthony Scaramucci, Founder and Managing Partner of SkyBridge Capital, said, ‘The UAE stands out globally with a competitive business environment with great entrepreneurial potential, which supports its position as a leading economic hub at the regional and global levels. The UAE is always seen as a country of the future with a diversified and competitive economy. It is also an ideal place to live and boasts an incubating environment that attracts bright minds and talents from all over the world.’
Shamsa Al Falasi, CEO of Citibank Group – UAE, said, ‘We are pleased to join the third edition of Investopia and contribute to enriching dialogues and discussions on some of the most important global trends related to the economy an
d the society as a whole. As we celebrate our 60th founding anniversary in the UAE this year, we look forward to enhancing our contributions to strengthening the country’s position as a leading global hub for financial services, and an ideal place for economic and investment thought-leaders to converge.’
Investopia 2024 is being held in partnership with Mubadala Investment Company, ADQ, Crypto.com, Standard Chartered, Citibank, First Abu Dhabi Bank, Emirates Development Bank, and the Global Forum for Entrepreneurship and Investment SALT and iConnections platform.
The latest edition of the event hosts more than 90 speakers representing major international companies, over more than 38 sessions covering the latest investment and economic trends. These include new strategies in risk capital deals, the growth potential of the green economy, the new generation of investments and other topics related to the world of investment and finance. It also offers participants an ideal opportunity to meet and network with m
ajor investors and business leaders.
The panel discussions and sessions hosted by Investopia 2024 include New Economic Frontiers: Navigating the Unknown; Investing in the Creative Economy: A conversation with Idris Elba; Navigating the New Economy: Global Economic Trends Challenging Governments; Strategic Asset Allocation in an Uncertain World; Hospitality Unleashed: Charting New Paths in Tourism Investment; and Family Wealth 2.0: Redefining Investment Strategies; among others.
Investopia 2024 hosts five roundtable meetings, one of which will be held in cooperation with Standard Chartered Bank and the UAE-UK Business Council, in addition to offering a large platform for investors and representatives of global companies and governments to come together and explore joint investment opportunities. Moreover, the event is expected to witness the announcement of new agreements and partnerships, and the launch of some joint investment projects by major investment and financial companies, international banks, leadi
ng economic institutions, and government entities from around the world.
Investopia 2024’s organising partner network includes several public entities and prestigious national and international companies such as Mubadala Investment Company, ADQ, Crypto.com, Standard Chartered, Citibank, First Abu Dhabi Bank and Emirates Development Bank, in addition to the American iConnections platform as fintech partner. iConnections is also organising an event titled ‘Cap Intro’ focusing on capital provision and investment brokerage services in cooperation with SALT, the global platform for entrepreneurship and investment, on the sidelines of Investopia.
Investopia 2024 builds on the success achieved by the previous two editions, which collectively attracted more than 3,500 participants from 60 different countries and witnessed the signing of several strategic partnerships in the investment and economic sectors, followed by the launch of investment dialogues in 10 countries. Most importantly, strategic projects worth mor
e than AED370 million were announced.
Investopia is one of the main initiatives within the first package of the ‘Projects of the 50’ announced by the UAE government in 2021, which aims to build the best and most innovative economy in the world.
The latest edition of Investopia promises to present fresh investment visions and proposals, opening up new horizons for investors from the public and private sectors. It will continue to build bridges of cooperation between countries and investment funds, attract more foreign direct investments to the UAE, and enhance its position as a leading global investment hub.
Source: Emirates News Agency
