• New initiative, under DIFC Strategy 2030, to use venture studios as a mechanism to incubate 10 unicorns, 100 scale-ups and over 8,000 innovation jobs in Dubai.
• World first to provide a Venture Studio Launchpad and a Research Living Lab to develop the “pervasive finance” ecosystem, including Open Finance, Digital Assets and Web3 in DIFC.
• Reaffirms Dubai’s position as a global hub for financial technology and innovation.
• Designed in collaboration with Enhance Ventures, a leading venture capital studio in the MENA region and Silicon Foundry, a Silicon Valley-based innovation advisory group.

Dubai, United Arab Emirates: Dubai International Financial Center (DIFC), the leading global financial center in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia (MEASA) region, has announced the launch of the first venture capital studio platform in the world exclusively focused on ubiquitous finance and digital asset technologies. The initiative is a key part of DIFC’s efforts to achieve the objectives of its 2030 strategy by attracting the best minds and companies from around the world to Dubai by providing them with all the support necessary to develop, test and launch new start-ups, scale-ups and businesses at unprecedented scale, time to market and quality.

To fuel this vision, DIFC is launching a dedicated unit called the Studio launch bar, which is backed by an international group of venture capital experts, digital asset pioneers and emerging technology strategists. Studio Launchpad is designed to attract and engage a consortium of leading startup and venture capital studios. The effort leverages DIFC’s unique ecosystem to enable collaboration and co-creation between venture capital studios, corporations, entrepreneurs, investors, and academic partners around the world.

Venture studios are innovative organizations that proactively create and invest in start-ups and actively help them succeed through their own internal capabilities. There are over 730 active venture capital studios around the world. More than 50% of them were launched in the last 5 years. The growth rate of venture capital studios is even higher. According to research published by the Global Startup Studio Network, new businesses that launch from studios experience 30% higher success rates and around 5% achieve unicorn status.

Through this initiative, Dubai will become the main hub for business construction in MEASA and join cities like San Francisco, New York, Berlin and Paris. Over the next 5 years, over 20 studios will move into the DIFC and are expected to launch over 200 new ventures, of which over 100 will be scale-ups and 10 will achieve unicorn status. Together they will create over 8,000 innovation jobs in Dubai and attract over AED 2 billion in venture capital.

Her Excellency Essa Kazim, Governor of DIFC, said, “DIFC is already home to the largest financial and FinTech ecosystems in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia. The launch of Venture Studio’s first Global Launchpad is a central pillar of our vision to place DIFC at the center of the digital transformation of the financial sector in the UAE and globally, reflecting the vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum.

He added: “We see great potential for leveraging the venture studio model to accelerate the creation of scale-ups and unicorns from Dubai that will contribute disproportionately to new job creation and economic development. DIFC is building an ecosystem from the ground up that will support studios and founders with everything they need to succeed and reinvent virtually every aspect of the financial services value chain to help realize Dubai’s ambitions for the era. digital.

The Studio Launchpad streamlines the business creation process and accelerates the development of new businesses that will support DIFC’s rapidly developing “Ubiquitous Finance” ecosystem. The Launchpad also supports fundraising and scaling new ventures by providing resident venture capital studio operators with access to a global network of potential clients, entrepreneurs, investors and developers. subject matter experts, all backed by a progressive regulatory environment and world-class infrastructure.

Part of the Launchpad offering will be a one-of-a-kind research living lab that will stimulate thought leadership and hands-on research in this rapidly changing space with the aim of unlocking new opportunities and generating data and insights that can inform how to shape existing and future business models, laws and regulations.

DIFC has opened a new purpose-built 150,000+ square foot facility that will house the Studio Launchpad team who will work alongside sponsors, investors and the new businesses they co-create. Every aspect of the design encourages the kind of spontaneous interactions that build community, create partnerships, and drive innovation.

The “Ubiquitous Finance” innovation ecosystem and Studio Launchpad were developed by DIFC in partnership with Dubai-based venture capital studio Enhance Ventures and Silicon Foundry, a leading Silicon-based innovation consultancy group Valley.

The studio model is a perfect fit for the Middle East due to its proactiveness and ability to support founders in the early days of operations. DIFC is the best place for the model to strive in the region as it is the largest cluster of leading financial institutions and fintech and innovation companies. It offers the perfect combination of talent, quality infrastructure, a strong regulatory offering and funding.

The future of finance is bigger than any business, government or individual. DIFC creates an environment where world-class entrepreneurs, leading venture capital studios and forward-looking companies come together to imagine a new world where financial services are digitized, decentralized and ubiquitous.

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About Dubai International Financial Center

The Dubai International Financial Center (DIFC) is one of the most advanced financial centers in the world and the leading financial center for the Middle East, Africa and South Asia (MEASA), which comprises 72 countries with a population of around 3 billion and an estimated GDP. of $7.7 trillion.

With 18 years’ experience in facilitating trade and investment flows in the MEASA region, the Center connects these fast-growing markets to economies in Asia, Europe and the Americas through Dubai.

The DIFC is home to an internationally recognized independent regulator and proven judicial system with an English common law framework, as well as the largest financial ecosystem in the region with nearly 30,000 professionals working in over 3,600 active registered companies – constituting the largest and most diversified pool. of industry talent in the region.

The Centre’s vision is to drive the future of finance through cutting-edge technology, innovation and partnerships. Today, it is the future global finance and innovation hub offering one of the most comprehensive FinTech and venture capital environments in the region, including cost-effective licensing solutions, responsive regulation, innovative acceleration programs and start-up funding for the growth phase. -UPS.

Comprising a variety of world-renowned retail and dining venues, a vibrant arts and culture scene, residential apartments, hotels and public spaces, DIFC continues to be one of the premier business and style destinations Dubai’s most sought-after lifestyles.

For more information, please visit our website: difc.ae, or follow us on Twitter @DIFC.

For media inquiries, please contact:
Omar Nastro
ASDA’A BCW
[email protected]
www.asdaa-bcw.com
www.arabyyouthsurvey.com
Tarek Kiwan
Dubai International Financial Center Authority
Manager, Corporate Communications
[email protected]