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Banking in the United Arab Emirates stands at an inflection point between the traditional branch-based model and a digital AI-enabled future – new Capco survey

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Nine in ten UAE survey respondents want apps that provide personalized insights into their finances

73% say they are comfortable having AI guide day-to-day financial decisions

DUBAI, UAE, Sept. 2, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — A desire for more insights into personal finances, a willingness to share data to unlock individually tailored services, and a high level of comfort with AI-driven guidance are key themes to emerge from the new survey of UAE retail banking customers conducted by Capco, the global management and technology consultancy.

As the UAE pushes forward with ambitious plans to grow its digital economy, Capco’s Bank of the Future survey of over 1,200 UAE banking service users aged between 18 and 65 found that 89% have become more confident in using mobile and digital banking services over the last two years. Eight in ten (83%) now use mobile apps to access banking, offering a solid foundation for future banking innovation.

In addition, 87% of respondents say they would be attracted to an app that offered personalized insights into their finances, including 41% who say this would be ‘extremely attractive’. The survey also reveals that 72% would ‘definitely’ or ‘probably’ share additional personal data – such as social media profiles or wearables data – to unlock personalized products, services or offers.

In support of its main survey, Capco conducted more focused polling of 500 consumers that looked specifically at the adoption of digital-first banking services. This found that nine in ten UAE respondents (89%) now have digital-first accounts, including both international and UAE-based firms. Three-quarters (76%) have an account with a UAE-based digital-first provider.

Capco’s survey findings highlight opportunities for UAE banks and fintechs to capitalize on positive attitudes to data sharing and innovation to deliver the products and services that consumers say they want. It also offers recommended paths forward for banks as they explore how best to apply the latest approaches to data analytics and AI to address customers’ aspirations.

James Arnett, Managing Partner, APAC & Middle East at Capco, said: “Consumers in the UAE are looking for products and services that provide a more bespoke user experience, including personalized financial insights. Seizing this opportunity will require an ever more nuanced understanding of individual consumer’s aspirations, and banks and other providers will need to prepare by investing in improved data management and advanced analytics.”

Naim Alame, Managing Partner, Middle East at Capco, said: “Consumers want convenient, integrated financial services and seamless digital journeys enabled by improved connectivity, data analytics and AI. Delivering the products and experiences that consumers want will require more agile banking models and significantly greater collaboration with third parties in order to embed value-added financial services ever more deeply into customers’ lives.

“For the bank of the future, collaboration may prove to be as important a priority as disruption. Offering a mobile-first experience that embeds payment aggregations, finance options and other ecosystem services to provide a more seamless and holistic experience will be the key to keeping customers engaged.”

Other key findings in Capco’s UAE survey report include:

86% of respondents would be attracted by a banking app that integrates financial services with the non-financial services they use in their daily lives, such as ride hailing and e-commerce.

37% would find such an app ‘extremely attractive’.

The characteristics that would convince a respondent to use a specific bank or financial institution include ‘a wide range of services’ (51%) and ‘more accessible services’ (45%).*

‘Trust in the company’ (39%) and ‘highly personalized products’ (34%) are also seen as important. 

Four in ten of respondents (41%) cite cashback options as a value-added feature they consider when selecting a new card or account.*

Other important features respondents would consider include discounts on travel (33%), monthly offers such as retail discounts (32%) and the ability to use points to make purchases (32%).

As digitalization accelerates, 72% of those using payment services identify online payments as a preferred payment method and 69% mention digital wallets.*

Cash remains a preferred payment method for 51% of respondents, and cheques continue to be preferred by 28%.In Capco’s recent Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) banking survey, online payments (65%) and cards (65%) were the leading preferred methods of payment, while 57% of respondents cited digital wallets, 55% mentioned cash, but only 11% chose cheques.

The UAE played host to the COP28 global climate conference in late 2023, and almost nine in ten respondents (88%) say it is important that their primary bank has a proactive stance on ESG issues.

In our KSA banking survey, 80% of respondents stated that this is important.

*Multiple responses permitted

Capco’s UAE survey report can be accessed here.

 

About Capco

Capco, a Wipro company, is a global management and technology consultancy specializing in driving digital transformation in the financial services industry. Capco operates at the intersection of business and technology by combining innovative thinking with unrivalled industry knowledge to fast-track digital initiatives for banking and payments, capital markets, wealth and asset management, insurance, and the energy sector. Capco’s cutting-edge ingenuity is brought to life through its award-winning Be Yourself At Work culture and diverse talent. To learn more, visit www.capco.com or follow us on LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube.

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Tulufan, Xinjiang: For the first time, a new energy plant and station has achieved “all-green electricity” operation

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TULUFAN, China, Sept. 20, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — On September 19, employees of State Grid Tulufan Electric Power Supply Company came to State Power Investment Zhongli Tenghui Qiquanhu Photovoltaic Power Station to provide comprehensive technical support and guidance for new energy enterprises.

Seven wind power and photovoltaic power generation enterprises, including Xinjiang Jize Power Generation Company in Tulufan, have obtained 6.035 million KWH of grid electricity by purchasing 6,035 “green certificates” to achieve “green electricity – green electricity” and achieve green energy use in the whole link of new energy power generation.

The green power certificate, referred to as “green certificate”, is the only certificate that identifies the production and consumption of renewable energy power. Promoting the all-green operation of new energy power generation is an important measure to promote the green consumption of renewable energy.

“Before, we were just ‘producers’ of green electricity. Now the buyers of green certificates have become green electricity consumers, and the production process is fully green.” Qiquan Lake photovoltaic power station inspection officer Forzati Dilishati said.

Since the launch of the green electricity and green certificate market, State Grid Tulufan Electric Power Supply Company has actively promoted green electricity trading, promoted the supply of green electricity and green certificates in multiple scenarios, promoted the rapid promotion and popularization of related services in Tulufan, and helped build a new power system.

In the first eight months of this year, the cumulative volume of green electricity transactions in Xinjiang reached 1.174 billion KWH, 93.83 times that of the whole year of 2022.

 

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/apac/news-releases/tulufan-xinjiang-for-the-first-time-a-new-energy-plant-and-station-has-achieved-all-green-electricity-operation-302253902.html

SOURCE State Grid Tulufan Electric Power Supply Company

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KuCoin’s Alicia Kao Shares Insights on How AI is Accelerating Mass Crypto Adoption at TOKEN2049 Singapore

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VICTORIA, Seychelles, Sept. 20, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — Alicia Kao, Managing Director at leading global cryptocurrency exchange, KuCoin, shared her vision on how crypto exchanges are the drivers that hold the keys to unlocking mainstream crypto adoption. Speaking at the OKX Main Stage at TOKEN2049 in Singapore on a panel session titled “Exchanges at the Helm: Driving Crypto from Niche to Mainstream,” Alicia shared that “accessing information about blockchain has become significantly easier…at KuCoin, we leverage complex data analysis algorithms using our trading bots to help users trade more efficiently.”

Industry stakeholders from all groups were in attendance for the panel, comprising investors, crypto enthusiasts, and more. The focus was on the crucial role of cryptocurrency exchanges in paving the way for crypto adoption and the eventual integration of digital assets into mainstream financial systems. Alicia and her fellow panelists explored both the challenges and opportunities that lay ahead for the crypto industry.

Alongside Alicia, the panel also featured leaders from leading crypto exchanges such as Ben Zhou, Co-Founder and CEO of Bybit; Gracy Chen, CEO of Bitget; Vivien Lin, Chief Product Officer of BingX; and Sonia Shaw, President of CoinW, and moderated by Michael Casey, Chairman of the Decentralized AI Society.

In addition to the panel discussion, KuCoin cemented its position as a leading centralised exchange (CEX) with a prominent presence on the show floor and activations that showcased the platform’s latest developments. The KuCoin Arcade also drew significant attention, offering an engaging and immersive experience with interactive crypto-themed games and activities.

“As we wrap up another edition of TOKEN2049 in Singapore, I’m once again filled with optimism for the future of the crypto industry. The energy, innovation, and collaboration displayed over the past two days have been immensely inspiring. At KuCoin, we will continue striving to be the driving force in this ever evolving space to build a more inclusive, decentralised, and prosperous financial future” added Alicia as TOKEN2049 concluded.

About KuCoin

Launched in September 2017, KuCoin is a leading cryptocurrency exchange with its operational headquarters in Seychelles. As a user-oriented platform with a focus on inclusiveness and community engagement. It offers over 900 digital assets across Spot trading, Margin trading, P2P Fiat trading, Futures trading, and Staking to its 34 million users in more than 200 countries and regions. KuCoin ranks as one of the top 6 crypto exchanges. KuCoin was acclaimed as “One of the Best Crypto Apps & Exchanges of June 2024” by Forbes Advisor and has been included as one of the top 50 companies in the “2024 Hurun Global Unicorn List”. Learn more at https://www.kucoin.com/.

 

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/apac/news-releases/kucoins-alicia-kao-shares-insights-on-how-ai-is-accelerating-mass-crypto-adoption-at-token2049-singapore-302253908.html

SOURCE KuCoin

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PayPal Ventures Reinforces Support of Chaos Labs with Additional Investment

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SINGAPORE, Sept. 20, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — Today, PayPal Ventures, the global venture capital arm of PayPal, announced an additional investment in Chaos Labs, an industry leader in onchain risk management. This investment underscores PayPal Ventures’ confidence in Chaos Labs’ potential and their blockchain products.

Chaos Labs’ recent launch of Edge, a new decentralized oracle protocol, has garnered significant attention within the industry. Edge has already secured a remarkable $30B over the last 2 months and has been adopted by leading exchanges such as Jupiter, the top perpetuals exchange on Solana, and GMX, the leading exchange on Arbitrum.

Edge offers a comprehensive, low-latency oracle solution, combining accurate price data with actionable market intelligence. Its advanced architecture ensures the security and efficiency of DeFi applications while providing insights into market dynamics and security risks. Edge monitors the market for specific risk signals, performs the offchain data parsing and computation, and outputs one actionable data point.

Omer Goldberg, CEO and Founder of Chaos Labs, said, “We’re excited to receive the strong confidence and additional support from the PayPal Ventures team. Edge by Chaos is the culmination of our entire company’s work and expertise. Edge Price, Risk, and Proofs deliver meaningful and unmatched contextualized risk and price data for assets including stablecoins and other real-world-assets, in addition to the crypto assets and venues that provide access to them.”

Last month, Chaos Labs announced a $55 million Series A funding round led by Haun Ventures, including prominent new investors such as F-Prime Capital, Slow Ventures, and Spartan Capital, and existing investors including PayPal Ventures. Chaos Labs has experienced significant growth, tripling its customer base and securing billions in trading volume, loans, and incentives.

PayPal Ventures’ investment aligns with PayPal’s ongoing commitment to the blockchain ecosystem. In May 2024, PayPal launched its stablecoin, PYUSD, on the Solana blockchain.

Amman Bhasin, Partner at PayPal Ventures, said, “Our continued investment in Chaos Labs reflects our belief in their vision to create a safer crypto ecosystem and move more financial services on chain. Chaos Labs has emerged as a leading risk authority in the sector and we are thrilled to witness their evolution as they launch innovative products like Edge to mitigate oracle vulnerabilities.”

Chaos Labs will receive the total investment in PYUSD on-chain. A simulation will be shown live on-stage on September 20th at the annual Solana Breakpoint conference in Singapore.

About Chaos Labs

Chaos Labs leads the blockchain risk management industry with innovative solutions for the evolving onchain financial landscape. Chaos Labs enables protocols to verify stability across all market conditions, merging offchain observability with onchain risk parameter adjustments. Backed by leading venture capital firms, Chaos Labs continues to set new standards for security and responsiveness in onchain finance. Founded in 2021, Chaos Labs is headquartered in New York City.

About PayPal Ventures

PayPal Ventures is the global corporate venture arm of PayPal. We invest for financial return in companies at the forefront of innovation in fintech, commerce enablement, digital infrastructure, and crypto/blockchain technologies. Through the expertise, experience, and vast network of PayPal Ventures – and the companies we invest in – we are helping to bring transformative solutions to market faster. For more information, please visit: www.paypal.vc 

 

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/paypal-ventures-reinforces-support-of-chaos-labs-with-additional-investment-302253911.html

SOURCE Chaos Labs, Inc.

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