Author: Mahdeehassan

Gary Vaynerchuk, renowned entrepreneur and marketing powerhouse, will kick off SBC Summit 2025’s first-ever Marketing Academy with an exclusive AMA (Ask Me Anything) session. This marks the launch of SBC Summit’s most ambitious educational initiative yet: four full-dayTech Academies covering AI, Marketing, Web 3.0 & Blockchain, and a new academy set to be announced soon. Designed to deliver hands-on, interactive learning with the world’s leading experts, the programme is open to all professionals with an interest in tech, not just those within the gaming industry. The Marketing Academy, a key pillar of SBC Summit’s Tech Academy programme, brings together a world-class mix of talent, including Gary Vaynerchuk, content…

Dammam, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia: ASMO, a joint venture between Saudi Aramco Development Company and DHL, has commenced its procurement services for general supply materials, issuing its first purchase orders for Aramco in July, 2025, and launching warehousing operations at its second site in Saudi Arabia: the Jazan warehouse. These milestones are part of ASMO’s phased national rollout under its 15-year strategic agreement with its anchor customer, Aramco, and support Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 agenda by localizing supply chains and strengthening the Kingdom’s logistics infrastructure. “With the start of procurement services for general supply materials and the transition of Jazan warehousing…

Dubai, UAE – HID, a worldwide leader in trusted identity and access management solutions, has announced a new line of FIDO-certified credentials—now powered by the new Enterprise Passkey Management (EPM) solution— designed to help organizations deploy and manage passkeys at the enterprise scale. New research from FIDO Alliance shows that while 87% of enterprises are adopting passkeys, nearly half of those that are yet to deploy cite complexity and cost concerns as primary barriers. HID’s solution streamlines the shift to passwordless authentication. This next phase of HID’s passwordless authentication roadmap gives enterprises choice, flexibility, and speed to deploy FIDO without compromising user…

Doha, Qatar: Doha Design District (DDD) and VCUarts Qatar have collaborated with artist Abdelrahman Al Muftah to design an innovative, sustainable sanctuary for Qatar’s native Bulbul birds. The Bird Cluster project, which includes a planter, bird nest, watering tray, and feeding tray, has been brought to life in Msheireb as part of DDD’s commitment to advancing Qatar’s Vision 2030, a future driven by sustainability and innovation. By encouraging collaboration and empowering emerging designers, this project exemplifies how DDD and VCUarts Qatar are cultivating local talent to create impactful solutions that benefit the community. Dana Kazic, Director of Doha Design District said: “This collaboration with…

SBC has officially announced the shortlisted nominees for the 12th edition of the SBC Awards, set to take place at Lisbon’s MEO Arena on Thursday, 18 September, the final day of SBC Summit 2025. Celebrating excellence across the global betting and gaming industry, the ceremony will spotlight standout achievements from operators, industry leaders, and suppliers across a broad spectrum of sectors, including payments, marketing, and platform innovation. This year’s edition has already broken records, with the highest number of nominations ever received across its 37 diverse categories, reflecting the industry’s growing commitment to delivering exceptional performance. Leading the shortlist are Pragmatic Play and Sportradar, each…

Dubai, UAE – Binghatti Holding Ltd (“Binghatti Holding”), one of the UAE’s fastest growing real estate developers, has successfully priced a USD 500 million 5-year Senior Unsecured Sukuk under its USD 1.5 billion Trust Certificate Issuance Programme, a transaction that was oversubscribed by 5 times. The Regulation S Sukuk issuance attracted strong regional and international investor demand, with an order book exceeding USD 2.5 billion. The sukuk was priced with a profit rate of 8.125%, equivalent to a spread of 418 basis points over the prevailing 5-year US Treasury yield, and given the strong levels of demand the issuance saw significant…

Dubai Duty Free (DDF), the world’s largest single airport retailer, delivered another standout performance for the month of July, posting sales of AED638.8 million (US$175 million) for the month and year-to-date sales of AED4.734 billion (US$1.30 billion), which is 5.86% up on the same period last year. This monthly milestone surpasses the previous July record of AED602.8 million (US$165 million) set in 2023 and is 9.7% higher or AED56.5 million (US$15.48 million) more than sales of AED582.26 (US$159.52 million) for July 2024. This places July 2025 in 9th place amongst the Top 10 months in Dubai Duty Free’s history with the…

Riyadh, KSA – The Saudi Real Estate Refinance Company (SRC), a PIF company, has signed a real estate finance portfolio purchase agreement with Bank Albilad. The signing took place in the presence of His Excellency Majid bin Abdullah Al-Hogail, the Minister of Municipalities and Housing and Chairman of SRC, alongside Mr. Nasser bin Mohammed Al-Subaie, Chairman of Bank Albilad. This strategic step reinforces the ongoing partnership between the two entities and reflects their shared commitment to supporting the growth of the Kingdom’s residential real estate finance market. The agreement forms part of a broader series of future initiatives aimed at deepening collaboration…

Dubai, UAE: Reinforcing the UAE’s growing reputation as a global destination for world-class dining experiences, Japan’s number one udon brand Marugame Udon has made its regional debut in Dubai with the opening of its first outlet at City Centre Deira. The grand opening on July 3 exceeded expectations, drawing queues of over 500+ guests well into the evening, and reflecting both strong market demand and the UAE’s unique ability to attract top international brands. Hiroshi Yamaguchi, President of Marugame commented on the opening saying: “We are thrilled to bring our handmade, freshly prepared Sanuki udon and spirit of hospitality to Dubai, marking…

The iconic MEO Arena will once again host SBC Summit’s Super Stage in 2025, offering an inspiring mix of daytime content, including keynotes from Gary Vaynerchuk and Randi Zuckerberg, followed by evening celebrations with global awards shows and the return of INFINITY Lisbon. Debuting at SBC Summit in 2024, the Super Stage was introduced as a premium conference and entertainment venue due to its scale and its location adjacent to the Feira Internacional de Lisboa. The stage quickly became a defining feature of the event, hosting iconic appearances by Sir Tim Berners-Lee and Tony Hawk, and serving as the birthplace of the now-famous INFINITY parties, now a signature element…