Qatar Financial Centre (QFC), a leading onshore financial and business centre in the region, continues to attract companies around the world. By attracting global firms, it is playing vital role in Qatar’s economic diversification.
QFC has registered 52 firms during the third quarter (Q3) this year. With the year’s final quarter registrations, QFC has already raised the number of new firms joining the platform in 2021 to 250 before the year-end. QFC has over the years enjoyed tremendous success having helped more than 1,200 companies from around the world establish and operate in Qatar, in a wide variety of sectors. Diversification and economic competitiveness have been at the centre of the QFC mission since its inception in 2005.
With Qatar expecting to experience substantial economic growth this year, QFC continues to receive increasing interest from global businesses expanding to Qatar and the wider region.
QFC signed a partnership with Ooredoo last month to leverage joint experience, expertise, and capabilities to further extend and develop collaboration between the two entities. The partnership incorporates a number of initiatives planned for the coming years, with a clear focus on areas of joint interest between Ooredoo and Qatar Financial Centre.
Sectors in which these initiatives will be rolled out include digital innovation, smart cities, fintech, cybersecurity API, cloud solutions, Blockchain, payment gateways and software and algorithm development.
Last month, QFC had also welcomed Nebix LLC, a fintech digital trade finance marketplace headquartered in Doha. Nebix joins QFC’s comprehensive suite of fintech companies, which will help advance Qatar’s position as a rising regional and global fintech and trade finance hub.
QFC’s strategy aims to develop a stronger regional ecosystem in Trade Finance. The Trade Finance Platform of Nebix will contribute to attracting more Financial Sector and Credit Insurance players to QFC, generating more Trade Finance opportunities for Qatari banks. QFC has exhibited steady growth during the first half of 2021 despite the ongoing COVID-19 disruption, with the number of registered firms on the platform witnessing 32 percent increase since H1 (first half) 2020.
A total of 136 firms from several countries launched their businesses in Qatar by registering on the QFC platform during the first half of this year. The firms, mainly originating from UK, Canada, India, Lebanon, and Qatar, represent key sectors including digital, financial services, and sports, continuing to bolster Qatar’s increasingly flourishing economic landscape.
