Regulating the Middle East’s Crypto Assets
Over the years, banking and finance have grown steadily by adapting technology to enhance solutions; the new wave of digital technology is disrupting the banking industry by introducing the latest platforms such as cryptocurrency and blockchain. Moreover, the latest venues have gained significant influence over global economics fast enough that specialized financial technology products are in high demand in the industry.
Even though the technology is developing fast with innovative and unique solutions for the financial industry, large corporations and banking are deterring to accept the latest developments into the system. In addition to this, the global financial market is not making transitions to modern technologies that can solve real-world problems through innovative platforms; this is because the existing procedures and systems in place prove to be challenging to be altered.
With the massive potential to bring positive changes to the financial industry and the clients it serves, the FinTech industry is poised to create breakthroughs in technology. However, as the technology is in its nascent stages, the rules and regulations regarding developing such systems and deploying such platforms have been complicated. By the governments of different countries, these out-of-the-box Financial technology development activities that can create a significant impact on the daily lives of humans are not being considered as they are grey areas that do not fall into legal and illegal.
FinTech Industry in Bahrain
Central Bank of Bahrain opens its doors to FinTech entrepreneurs and start-ups working on developing cutting-edge technology-based financial products and solutions with flexible regulations in place. The officials in Bahrain are very accommodating to the latest technology-based industries set up by both nationals and foreigners in the country. They understand the potential growth of such entities and their impact on Bahrain’s economy.
The FinTech industry in Bahrain is one of the busiest in the Middle East and North Africa region due to its supportive regulations for technology start-ups, tech-savvy foreign population, friendly business atmosphere and cheaper cost of operations in the Middle East region. With the willingness of the government to create an embracing atmosphere for businesses working on crypto-technology, the industry in Bahrain is growing steadily to serve the potential use cases in banking, finance, and business affecting the daily lives of citizens.
Where is Bahrain Headed?
Central Bank of Bahrain (CBD) is capturing the market in the Arab FinTech sector by creating regulations to handle assets like cryptocurrencies, blockchain and other modern financial products/services. However, in addressing the current market demands, Bahrain is flexible enough to add new comprehensive regulation requirements as the industry is still considered to be in its nascent stages. At the same time, most central banks are failing to take the lead to implement a regulatory environment for leveraging the benefits of digital cryptocurrencies and don’t plan to do it anytime sooner. However, the small Arab nation of Bahrain is working on actively developing an integrated environment for handling these financial technology products and services.
The authorities in Manama are preparing regulated incubator-styled sandbox environments to implement a licensing regime for businesses operating in the digital cryptocurrency trading and blockchain platforms, making them work along the lines of the laws while offering them the freedom to experiment with the latest financial technologies which address the real-world problems. By doing so, Bahrain is looking forward to the opportunity to make the country a leader in FinTech and restore its position as a regional banking and financial hub in the MENA region by attracting international investments into Bahrain.
Why do You Need to Setup your FinTech Company in Bahrain?
The lack of regulations makes it difficult for emerging industries and technologies to set up operations and experiment on their latest product and services. As technology entrepreneurs and investors, we like to see rapid progress in the evolution of such cryptocurrency systems & blockchain platforms. In the case of a technology entrepreneur finding a supportive ecosystem with regulations that sustain high-tech industries and financial assistance, Bahrain is the ideal place for setting up your FinTech Start-up. The country has implemented flexible rules tailor-made to support FinTech businesses in the region.
The exclusive sandbox environments such as Bahrain FinTech Bay are available for FinTech’s in the country allows the players to experiment and test out new technologies before they are released into the market as high-tech financial products such as crypto-assets and other services. Furthermore, Bahraini authorities and governmental agencies such as EDB promote business activities with technology found in the country by offering liberal visas for spouse and dependents.
If you’re still reading this, I’m sure that you have been planning to take a step into the FinTech industry or looking to set up your technology start-up in the MENA region. Then make no other direction than setting up your start-up operation in the Kingdom of Bahrain as the country offers excellent advantages for small early-stage start-ups and companies with tax incentives, liberal visa policies. Along with these, the government has other natural benefits such as
- Ease of doing business
- Excellent regulations for crypto-based and blockchain companies
- Hundred per cent foreign ownership of the business in most sectors
- Low-cost of operations
- Zero corporate and income taxes
- High-level governmental support for technology-based start-ups
- Availability of highly skilled tech-workers
- Safe and affordable residence options
- Low crime rate
- Liberal visa policy
- Ever-expanding intellectual property laws that cover the latest tech and emerging industries
Having all the practical advantages a start-up needs, Bahrain is home to numerous FinTech and technology-based start-ups that work on hardware, e-commerce, and other platforms to develop innovative solutions to existing problems in the local and international market. Finally, if you want to set up your company at an ideal location, then Bahrain is the choice.