Bank ABC Anchors Fintech Forward 2024 as Platinum Sponsor, Showcasing AI and Digital Finance Vision

Bank ABC served as Platinum Sponsor of Fintech Forward 2024, Bahrain's flagship fintech conference, using the platform to showcase its digital banking strategy and the continued growth of its mobile-only subsidiary, ila Bank.

The event convened financial services leaders, technology executives, and regulators to explore topics including generative AI in banking, decentralised finance, and the future of digital payments. Bank ABC's prominent sponsorship role reinforced its positioning as a digital banking leader in the MENA region.

Bank ABC highlighted ila Bank's growth trajectory at the conference. The mobile-only digital bank, launched from Bahrain, has been expanding its customer base and product range, offering savings, personal finance, and payment services through a streamlined app-based experience. The bank positions ila as its vehicle for reaching digitally native customers across the region.

Fintech Forward has established itself as a key gathering for Bahrain's financial services ecosystem, reflecting the country's position as one of the Gulf's most active fintech hubs. The Central Bank of Bahrain's progressive regulatory approach, including its regulatory sandbox and mandatory open banking framework, has attracted fintech companies and encouraged established banks to invest in digital innovation.

Bank ABC, headquartered in Bahrain with a global banking network, has been pursuing a dual strategy of modernising its institutional banking operations while building digital banking capabilities through ila Bank. The Fintech Forward sponsorship provided visibility for both dimensions of this strategy.

The conference featured discussions on the practical deployment of AI in banking, a topic of growing urgency as Gulf financial institutions move from AI experimentation to production deployment.