Bringing Together the Who’s Who of Digital!
The ArabNet Digital Summit 2018 brings you the “behind-the-scene” initiators of change from across the world.
Over 90 speakers will join us this year as we pave the way for the latest in digital.
Abdul Baset Al Janahi
Chief Executive Officer, Dubai SME
Abdul Baset Al Janahi is the CEO of Dubai SME, the agency of the Department of Economic Development in Dubai mandated to promote the small and medium enterprise sector. In his current role, Al Janahi has been contributing significantly to developing and maintaining an entrepreneurial ecosystem in Dubai and mobilising government and private sector support to help young and aspiring entrepreneurs in the UAE grow into successful business leaders. Today, under his leadership, more than 13,000 entrepreneurs have been assisted. Prior to starting Dubai SME, Al Janahi was a founding member in a number of leading organisations and transformational initiatives in Dubai, including the Dubai Shopping Festival, Dubai Internet city and Aswaq. Currently he’s also the Vice Chairman and Managing Director of the Mohammad Bin Rashid Mohammed Bin Rashid Fund for SME, a member of Board of Directors of Tejuri.com (LLC) and a member of UAE Genetic Diseases Association. Al Janahi is a graduate in Business Administration; he has also completed executive programmes in management, entrepreneurship and public finance from the Harvard University, Harvard Kennedy School, Georgetown University, National University of Singapore and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology School of Management.
Aarti Tandon
Executive Director, Smart Cities New York
Aarti Tandon is the Executive Director of Smart Cities New York (SCNY), North America's leading global conference to highlight the innovations and investments being deployed by governments, business leaders, NGOs, and academia to make cities around the world more sustainable. She has overseen the tours of the world’s most famous Bollywood stars and organized high-level sports and entertainment delegations for the U.S. State Department in advance of the 2014 World Cup. She spent over a decade representing clients ranging from Grammy-nominated artists to emerging songwriters, filmmakers, producers and more.
Aby Thomas
Editor in Chief, Entrepreneur Middle East
Aby Sam Thomas is the Editor in Chief of Entrepreneur Middle East, a business magazine catering to the region's entrepreneurs and business-minded readership. In this role, Aby writes and edits for Entrepreneur Middle East's monthly print publication, and website, www.entrepreneur.com/me. He is especially interested in stories on startups and the people behind them. Prior to media, Aby was an analyst programmer with Accenture, where he worked with J. P. Morgan Chase's investment banking arm at offices in Mumbai, London and New York.
Ahmed Al-Balaghi
Blockchain Researcher
Ahmed is a blockchain researcher and managing director at Viewfin Middle East, where he focuses his efforts and research on FinTech, blockchain and global industry trends. He worked in the cryptocurrency and blockchain industries in both China and the UK where he developed deep industry expertise, particularly on blockchain protocols, assets, digital identity, cryptoeconomics and exchanges. Ahmed holds a Bachelor of Science in Economics, Statistics and Maths from Queen Mary, University of London and was awarded a scholarship to study Mandarin at Fudan University.
Arihant Jain
Business Head - Middle East and Africa, Freshworks
Arihant is the Head of Business for Middle East and Africa at Freshworks. His latest startup Joe Hukum (acquired by Freshworks), provides businesses with chatbots for an enhanced customer engagement with end users. With over 15 years of experience, he has also held senior positions in customer support, business operations and sales across different verticals and geographies. Arihant holds a Masters in Business from INSEAD and a Bachelor's degree from Stanford University. He enjoys design and travel in his free time.
Bruno Bianchini
Head of MENA Global Partnerships - EMEA Emerging Markets, Google
Bruno leads Google Publishers business across Middle East and North Africa with the main goal to empower publishers to thrive in a digital future. He works closely with partners on their most challenging objectives and brings the best of Google to guide them on their digital transformation path. Having previously been responsible for the Telecoms business across Emerging Markets in EMEA and News publishers and Broadcasters in Italy, Bruno has a wealth of digital experience at Google.
Christopher Kiew-Smith
Head of FinTech Strategy, Financial Services Regulatory Authority, Abu Dhabi Global Market
Christopher Kiew-Smith (Chris) joined the Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA) of Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) in 2017. He supports FSRA and overall ADGM in their approach to innovative financial technologies. Chris is involved in initiatives such as the ADGM Regulatory Laboratory (Reglab), its Innovation Centre and institutional-focused projects. Prior to ADGM, he was at the U.K. Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), and he led the regulator’s policy towards blockchain technologies. Chris was also a member of the Whitechapel Think Tank, a London-based group of industry experts discussing the potential of blockchain solutions in financial markets.
David Parker
Executive Director of Financial Services, Bahrain Economic Development Board
David is charged with supporting Bahrain’s conventional and Islamic financial industries with a particular focus on international outreach. He works closely with key stakeholders such as the Central Bank of Bahrain to create an innovation-friendly environment for businesses and investors alike. This has led to the introduction of Bahrain’s Regulatory Sandbox along with Bahrain Fintech Bay, the largest fintech hub in the Middle East and North Africa, of which David is a Board Member. He’s also worked on assignments that included heading Invest Hong Kong in London and International Business Wales.
Fahim Al Qasimi
Partner, AQ&P
Fahim is a partner at AQ&P, a UAE-based corporate advisory and investment firm. As an advocate for strong corporate governance in SMEs, he’s spoken on the importance of addressing corporate governance at the outset of any venture and has worked with startups and SMEs as a corporate governance consultant. Fahim is an angel investor in a number of ventures in the UAE, is a non-executive director at Taqarabu Hybrid Communications and has served as a director and chaired the audit committee of a large media conglomerate in the UAE.
