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Thomson Reuters to host 12th MENA Regulatory Summit 2018

Thomson-Reuters
Thomson-Reuters
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MUSCAT, DEC 5 - Thomson Reuters, the world’s leading source of intelligent information for businesses and professionals, will co-host the 12th MENA Regulatory Summit on February 5 in Manama, Bahrain.


Held under the auspices of the Central Bank of Bahrain, the summit will debate key challenges that financial institutions and corporates in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) face in complying with international standards, fighting financial crime and promoting strong internal compliance cultures.


According to the 2017 Thomson Reuters MENA Financial Crime Report, 65 per cent of respondents indicated that their compliance investment had increased over the past two years, revealing that the pressure to comply continues to intensify in the MENA region. This statistic is in line with the findings of the global Cost of Compliance 2016 report, which showed a slowing down of compliance spend worldwide, isolating the Middle East and Asia as the only two regions where compliance spend is increasing.


Another area of concern for C-level executives was the challenge of keeping up with new and emerging technologies to fight financial crime. 89 per cent of respondents expect their technology to become increasingly sophisticated, while 63 per cent expect their compliance costs to rise. It is noteworthy that along with the challenges of implementing these new technologies in a cost-effective manner, only 56 per cent of respondents have a high confidence in the ability of their financial crime programmes to achieve their compliance goals.


Nadim Najjar, Managing Director, MENA, Thomson Reuters, said: “We’ve seen impressive progress in using emerging technologies such as blockchain, AI, machine learning and big data to combat financial crime. In the coming years, we expect implementation of these new technologies to increase significantly, which will require investment from organisations in systems and tools, as well as training and upskilling.”

“Thomson Reuters stands at the crossroads of regulation and technology, and we look forward to co-hosting this summit in order to increase understanding and awareness about the impact of global and local regulation, which is supporting the ongoing fight against financial crime and bringing about a culture change within the industry,” he added.


Khalid Hamad, Executive Director of Banking Supervision at the CBB said, “The Central Bank of Bahrain is very pleased to partner with Thomson Reuters in hosting the 12th MENA Regulatory Summit 2018.


This summit will facilitate discussion between public and private sector entities and thought leaders, helping shape the solutions to key industry challenges, ultimately increasing confidence in financial markets. We look forward to taking part in the forum and seeing an open exchange of ideas and sharing of best practice, which will enable the financial services industry to further improve the culture of compliance in the region.”


The summit will highlight the global regulatory landscape and its influence on the MENA region, economic and regulatory impacts of digitalization, de-risking, financial inclusion and the digital revolution in financial services, such as cyber security, cryptocurrency and blockchain.


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