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Qatar Development Bank (QDB) kicked off Monday the 11th edition of the ‘Rowad Entrepreneurship Conference’, which will run until November 19 at the Doha Exhibition and Convention Centre (DECC).Organised in collaboration with the Young Entrepreneurs Club, the three-day event will also host the second ‘Young Entrepreneurs Media Forum’, featuring participation from government and private organisations, media professionals, investors, and entrepreneurs.His Excellency the Minister of Commerce and Industry Sheikh Faisal bin Thani bin Faisal al-Thani led the opening ceremony of the conference, which carries the theme ‘Beyond Boundaries: Scaling, Sustaining, and Succeeding’.The event is held under the patronage of His Excellency the Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim al-Thani.QDB CEO Abdulrahman bin Hesham al-Sowaidi said, “Today’s opening clearly demonstrates Rowad’s pivotal role in supporting entrepreneurship and fostering innovation and creative thinking at the national and regional levels.“The direct connections we've seen between companies and investors, and the knowledge sharing among experts and entrepreneurs, showcase this platform’s unique ability to forge new pathways for collaboration across Qatar's business ecosystem.”He added: “Rowad’s core mission is to create an environment where companies can access the knowledge, relationships, and opportunities they need to thrive. We want every innovator to gain valuable insights into market dynamics, enabling them to plan strategically and grow with confidence.”According to QDB, this year’s theme charts a strategic course for entrepreneurship, emphasising excellence in business model development, market expansion, and leveraging sustainability and innovation as competitive differentiators that attract investment.The 2025 edition offers a rich and diverse programme, including a startup exhibition that features innovative solutions from 120 local and international companies. The conference hosts over 100 speakers and experts, more than 30 specialised workshops, and 15 panel discussions organised across four thematic tracks.The sessions tackle critical topics for Qatar’s entrepreneurial ecosystem: strategies for scaling operations and entering new markets, leveraging global demand to refine products and services, prioritising sustainability, and embracing innovative solutions.An interactive pitch platform allows entrepreneurs to present their ventures to investors and explore funding opportunities, while dedicated meetings between startups and investors facilitate partnership building and investment discussions.The conference enjoys strong institutional support, with strategic partners including the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology and the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, alongside strategic sponsor QNB Group.The 11th edition of Rowad builds on the conference’s established track record, strengthening Doha’s position as a dynamic innovation hub and premier entrepreneurship destination. Rowad is held as part of Global Entrepreneurship Week (GEW).

Deal endorses establishment of Centre of Excellence and Support for FinTech in Doha, serving as a dynamic platform that energises fintech community both locally and regionallyQatar Development Bank (QDB), represented by the Qatar FinTech Hub (QFTH), announced the signing of a strategic co-operation agreement with the Global Finance & Technology Network (GFTN), an initiative by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS).The agreement was signed by QDB CEO Abdulrahman bin Hesham al-Sowaidi, who is also QFTH chairman, and GFTN Group CEO Sopnendu Mohanty, on the sidelines of the ‘Singapore FinTech Festival’.It establishes a long-term framework for collaboration in policy innovation, ecosystem enablement, capacity building, and the exchange of knowledge and best practices in financial technology.The agreement endorsed the establishment of a Centre of Excellence and Support for FinTech in Doha, serving as a dynamic platform that energises the fintech community both locally and regionally. The centre will work to deliver strategic insights and pioneering research on transformative financial technologies and their impact on markets, from Africa and Central Asia to the Gulf Co-operation Council countries.It will further contribute to strengthening collaboration between regulators, financial institutions, and innovators to develop inclusive and forward-looking policy frameworks that support emerging economies, in addition to advancing capacity building through specialised training programmes, knowledge transfer, and dedicated workshops across the financial sector.The agreement also stipulated collaborating and coordinating on establishing a ‘Qatar FinTech Forum’ in the future, to serve as an annual international fintech event held as an extension of the ‘Singapore FinTech Festival’, aimed at advancing the future of financial technology in Qatar and the region.Doha was selected as the permanent host of the forum due to its position as one of the fastest-growing fintech ecosystems in the region, and as a strategic bridge linking the Middle East with the global digital economy.The forum will be a platform for exchanging expertise and ideas among policymakers, regulators, financial institutions, investors, entrepreneurs, and academia from across continents, to discuss the future of innovation and business in fintech.Al-Sowaidi said, “Our partnership with the Global Finance & Technology Network reflects our deep commitment to positioning Qatar as a global centre of excellence for financial innovation. This aligns with the objectives of the Third Financial Sector Strategic Plan and the Qatar FinTech Strategy led by Qatar Central Bank.”Al-Sowaidi added: “Through this partnership, benefiting from GFTN’s global expertise in policy innovation and digital transformation, we aim to build on the strong momentum the country is witnessing in developing local fintech capabilities, attract world-class innovators to Qatar, and strengthen the financial ecosystem to serve as a bridge connecting local capacity with global opportunity.“This partnership builds on Qatar’s robust digital infrastructure and thriving business environment, which have witnessed remarkable progress in recent years. We believe it will play a pivotal role in driving sustainable growth in the fintech sector, supporting economic diversification efforts, and advancing the long-term ambitions of Qatar National Vision 2030.”Mohanty said, “Qatar’s bold innovation agenda provides fertile ground for global collaboration. Together with QDB’s deep commitment to entrepreneurship, innovation, and national capacity building, we are creating a platform that connects capital, policy, technology, and talent into an engine for accelerated and inclusive digital growth across Mena.”The partnership builds on the growing collaboration between Qatar and Singapore, combining both nations’ fintech expertise to advance cross-border innovation, investment, and knowledge exchange. It reinforces Qatar’s position as a leading regional hub for fintech excellence, aligned with national strategies that support sustainable, technology-driven economic growth.

The first cohort from the venture studio - backed by the Qatar Investment Authority (QIA), Qatar Development Bank (QDB) and Utopia Capital Management - is expected before the end of this year, according to a top official of QDB."We look forward to welcoming the first cohort from Qatar before the end of this year," QDB chief executive officer Abdulrahman bin Hesham al-Sowaidi told the seventh edition of Investment Forum 2025, organised by QDB in association with Young Entrepreneurs Club.Developing Qatar's venture capital ecosystem, in partnership with a fund-of-fund programme launched by QIA, the QDB had collaborated with Utopia Capital Management to establish the first venture studio of Qatar, operated by A-typical Ventures.Unveiled at the Web Summit 2025, the venture studio is actively seeking the region's entrepreneurs looking to scale innovations and drive economic diversification across sectors such as fintech, healthtech, e-commerce, logistics and mobility, and climatetech.The studio will act as a magnet for entrepreneurs and investors across the region, while nurturing Qataris' startup with skills and capital, al-Sowaidi said."This long-term partnership is a testament to our commitment to advancing the VC (venture capital) ecosystem through private sector enablement. This partnership is already in action," he said, adding the region is witnessing an increasing maturity in the financial ecosystem that encourages startup investments, even amidst global headwinds.A-typical Ventures will enable pre-seed, seed and pre-series A founders across the GCC (Gulf Co-operation Council), Levant, Pakistan and Turkiye to refine their business models, optimise their go-to-market strategies, and unlock powerful growth opportunities.The QIA's investment marks one of the first deployments of capital from its 'fund-of-funds' programme, which aims to develop a strong start-up and venture capital ecosystem in Qatar and attract leading venture capital funds and entrepreneurs to the region.QDB is co-building the next generation of game-changing ventures as it collaborates with Utopia and the Qatari partners, marking a bold step toward reshaping the startup landscape.By merging strategic investment with hands-on venture-building expertise, QDB aims to empower high-potential startups in Qatar and across the Middle East, helping them scale faster, break into new markets, and drive real economic impact.Mohammed al-Emadi, QDB executive director of Incubation and VC Investment, said the venture studio would be catering to the entire Mena region."Our alignment and agreement with Utopia is that we don't want to have a centre that's only dedicated for single market. We want a Mena venture studio. And the reason is that we want to serve our 2030 vision by building a knowledge-based economy. We believe that we need to draw the talents from Qatar, but we also need to attract talents to the region and to Qatar specifically," he added.

As part of the State of Qatar's efforts to promote national industry and enhance local content in government procurement, the Ministry of Finance, in collaboration with Qatar Development Bank (QDB), organised a dedicated meeting to present and discuss the draft Mandatory List of National Products, reports QNA.The meeting targeted owners and managers of Qatari factories as well as contracting companies, providing a platform for direct dialogue on the proposed implementation mechanisms, and offering an opportunity to gather feedback and insights from representatives of the industrial sector regarding activation opportunities and integration with government entities.This initiative reflects the commitment of the relevant authorities to empower national manufacturers to benefit from government procurement opportunities and to strengthen partnerships between the public and private sectors, contributing to the realisation of Qatar National Vision 2030 for a diversified and sustainable knowledge-based economy.