The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has been tipped to record unprecedented growth in the technology industry in 2025, with experts predicting revenue could hit nearly $4 billion in revenue.
This growth is driven by widespread expansion in digital innovation, a new stream of cutting-edge tech coming into the country, a supportive business ecosystem and the rise of the iGaming sector.
The UAE’s desire to reduce their dependence on the oil sector is well documented, and the tech industry is one of many areas they are betting on to get the job done.
The Role of Fintech & iGaming in UAE’s Tech Boom
The UAE stands out for its digital financial services landscape, particularly in investment tech, and the sector has been on a meteoric rise over the past five years.
The country was home to 294 companies in this space at the end of 2022, with an investment volume of $127.7 million – an astonishing sevenfold increase compared to 2020.
The government is looking to implement initiatives that will boost those numbers even further. They want to make sure there are at least 386 more companies in the investment tech space by 2025, and such an ambitious move will further solidify the nation’s position as a global fintech leader.
Experts also believe that growth will be accompanied by a 145 percent increase in investment volume, reaching $313.5m.
Meanwhile, global fintech group UnaFinancial are also playing their part in taking the UAE’s investment tech sector to the next level. The firm is committed to launching a digital finance app that comes with an online investment platform.
This platform will allow users to acquire and trade asset classes, including equities, forex, bonds, commodities and derivatives. Their goal is in line with the UAE’s commitment to building a cutting-edge financial service landscape that seamlessly integrates tech into everyday life.
The UAE’s iGaming industry is also emerging as a vital contributor to the nation’s tech boom following the establishment of the General Commercial Gaming Regulatory Authority (GCGRA).
The GCGRA was established to oversee commercial gaming activities in the country, and they decide which companies get a licence to operate in the UAE. They have laid the groundwork for a secure and regulated gaming environment.
One of the major breakthroughs in this sector is the issuance of a gaming license to Astra Tech company, PayBy Technology Projects LLC, making them the first fintech company to secure a gaming-related vendor license.
PayBy is authorised to provide essential services such as digital wallets, secure payments and fraud detection systems for licensed gaming operators.
Their services will also be useful to the online gaming community. PayBy can improve the operations of UAE online casinos by providing cutting-edge financial and security solutions.
Astra Tech’s Ultra app ecosystem integrates payments, remittances, lending and gaming-related services. It is proof that tech has the power to unify diverse services to improve user experience.
HTML5 Gaming
Aside from fintech and iGaming, the Middle East is also making moves to establish itself as a major player in the global gaming market.
The region’s gaming market hit $6.34bn in November 2024, and experts predict it could surpass the $10bn mark by 2029, which accounts for a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 11.02%. This growth highlights the increased demand for games in the region and how supportive the ecosystem is for game developers.
UAE-based game tech start-up Playgama is poised to have a profound impact on the HTML5 gaming market. Founded in 2023 by Dmitry Kachmar, the company intends to give HTML5 game developers access to the whole web market at once.
The company has raised $3m in funding from global venture capital leaders, including The Open Platform, part of the Telegram ecosystem, and s16vc, a global venture capital fund backed by over 150 successful start-up founders.
Playgama’s platform simplifies game distribution by offering developers a ‘master key’ to reach over 200 million monthly active players across diverse markets.
Kachmar wants to transform the fragmented HTML5 market in the UAE by handing developers the necessary tools to maximise their return on investment (ROI).
The ultimate goal is to collaborate with game developers from the Middle East so they can target audiences in key markets across the globe, including Europe and the United States.
Playgama also wants to bridge the gap between Web2 and Web3 gaming through partnerships with The Open Platform and TON Ventures. The company’s gaming portal already supports play-to-earn mechanics and crypto payments.
