CTO & Co-Founder of DinarDirham, Arai Ezzra, presents at the Keynote 2017 conference in Dubai, at the Burj Al Arab

The Keynote 2017 conference (The World Blockchain Forum) just took place on March 6th, 2017, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, at the Burj Al Arab in the center of the bustling city. The event is relatively new, but it’s already drawing the attention of those interested in blockchain technology. According to the event’s website, it has bolstered:

5 World-class networking events

12 Of the world’s most innovative financial conferences

40+ Of the world’s most famous speakers

150+ Articles written in major news outlets

250+ CEOs, Senior Executives, VIPs, Investors, Government Officials, and More

This year marked the second anniversary of the event, which is drawing in experts from around the globe. In a remark by ‘His Excellency’ Abdullah bin Touq, Acting CEO of the Dubai Future Foundation, taken from an article at mediaoffice.ae, he said:

“Although only in its second edition, the Forum featured world-class experts, professionals and academics to explore the potential of Blockchain technology, which, in turn, serves to realize the vision and directives of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, to place Dubai 10 years ahead of other cities.

The event was full of famous people from all over the world. A few of the high profile speakers included – but were not limited to: Bruce Fenton (President at Atlantic Financial), Faris Ghandour (Partner at Wamda Capital), Osman Sultan (CEO at du), Peter Smith (CEO of Blockchain.com), Estaban Van Goor (Tax Lawyer at Baker & McKenzie), Ola Doudin (CEO at BitOasis), Eva Kaili (Member of the European Parliament), Marco Streng (CEO of Genesis Mining), Jason King (Founder of Unsung), and Peter Rizzo (Coindesk Editor), to name a few.

As stated, the event was a high profile event, with a key function being to help Dubai in it’s quest for being the first ever blockchain ran city. Mediaoffice.ae put the beginning of the event succinctly:

“Following welcome remarks by Moe Levin, CEO of Keynote Events, Dubai Smart Government CEO Wesam Lootah delivered the event’s opening speech. Then, Mohammed Shael Al Saadi, CEO of Strategic Affairs at the Department of Economic Development, discussed what it takes to build an innovation economy and how to go about achieving that. Dr Noah Raford, COO of the Dubai Future Foundation, followed, heading a session titled “The Key Is Implementation”.”

Enter DinarDirham:

CTO & Co-Founder of DinarDirham, Arai Ezzra, was invited by the Dubai Government’s Advisor to attend the event this year, in order to share his expertise in blockchain technology and digitizing gold using Ethereum’s protocol. DinarDirham was also a sponsor at the event, along with the official foundation of Bitcoin.com. The invitation to be a speaker at this prestigious event was a great honour, and we are truly grateful. The event was attended by the Dubai Government’s representatives, as well as by international blockchain companies from the EU and the Middle East.

The fact that Ezzra, a Malaysian citizen by birth, was invited by the government to speak at Keynote 2017, means that not only did he bring Malaysia to an international stage, but also that the Dubai government has officially asked a Malaysian citizen for their expertise in blockchain technology… a field which Dubai intends to bloom in.

And now, Malaysia is pleased to have participated in that effort. Of course, Ezzra was not alone. The Keynote conference was also attended by numerous others, including Mohammed Shael Al Saadi, the CEO of Strategic Affairs at the Department of Economic Development, and Wesam Lootah, the CEO of Smart Dubai Government.

All these guests bring their expertise to the table and into the spotlight, especially for Dubai, which has big plans for blockchain technology. According to an article by cointelegraph.com, Dubai intends to become the first blockchain-powered city by 2020. In the same article, the following information is given:

“Already, Blockchain startups in Dubai have begun to receive various grants and investments from government-owned entities. Hypergive for instance, a solution designed to fight hunger using Blockchain technology, won the 2017 Year of Giving Award at the World Government Summit in Dubai, which was presented by UAE Prime Minister and Rule of Dubai Al Maktoum.”

In fact, Dubai’s Government has gone as far as to officially claim the city as the Global Capital of blockchain. Obsessive, determined, or both? You decide. But one thing is for certain, Dubai appears to be racing ahead to accomplish that task. DinarDirham hopes that it’s innovations will help in the journey. We believe we’re a great model for Dubai. We own a world class technology which is comparable to several international companies which are also using blockchain technology such as Digix Global, CodeTract, and the UK Royal Mint.

We look forward to watching this development in the future.

Thank you for reading.

