ABU DHABI - The Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development (ADDED) has signed 9 agreements to onboard nine leading institutions to ‘Investor Journey’ programme, enabling business owners and investors to apply for business bank accounts, telecommunications, business operational support, and corporate insurance services directly on the portal.

Sameh Al Qubaisi, Director-General of Economic Affairs at ADDED, signed the agreements with Sara Al Binali, Group Head of Corporate, Commercial and International Banking at First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB), Ahmed Al Naqbi, CEO of Emirates Development Bank (EDB), Mohammed Wassim Khayata, CEO of Al Maryah Community Bank, Mohamed Al qubaisi, Chairman of Finance House, Jasim Al Awadi, Head of Government and Key Accounts Segments at Emirates Integrated Telecommunications Company (du), Esam Mahmoud, Senior Vice President of SMBs at Emirates Telecommunications Group (e&), Fahim Mohamed al Shehi, CEO of Islamic Arab Insurance Company (Salama), Sanad Mohammed Saeed Almeqbali, CEO of Emirates Zone Companies Representation, and Ahmad Obaid Ahmad Al Badwawi, CEO of Datack International Business Management.

‘Investor Journey’, launched by ADDED in 2021, is designed to meet needs of current and prospective businesses, entrepreneurs, and investors by offering seamless integration and an advanced service ecosystem to facilitate new business ideation and set-up. It offers a fully digitalised experience for investors to access a range of services, transactions, and procedures of various government entities in one platform.

Onboarding new partners, who join over 25 other government and private sector entities and institutions, will further enhance Abu Dhabi’s business ecosystem, and strengthen the partnership between private and public sectors.

Phase 2 of ‘Investor Journey’, which was unveiled during ADDED participation in GITEX Technology Week 2022, integrates more services and business setup tools and features.

The portal includes an informative simulator to guide investors through their journey to set-up a business, and an interactive map, supported by leading real estate portals in the UAE, to identify and select locations and commercial spaces for their businesses.

Al Qubaisi said, “Expanding the network of 'Investor Journey' partners and integrating new services is part of our efforts to further strengthen Abu Dhabi’s robust business ecosystem by working closely with best-in-class partners in various sectors to enrich investors’ experiences. Since its launch, the 'Investor Journey' has helped in facilitating ease of doing business by reducing costs and requirements, simplifying procedures, and enabling seamless integration of government services. These efforts are paying off, and we remain focused to continuously improve our regulations, systems, and services.”

“As digitalisation is a major trend in today’s economy and everyday life, we believe employing cutting-edge technologies will empower investors and entrepreneurs, who play a major role in achieving objectives of sustainable development,” Al Qubaisi added.

Hala Al Ameri, Executive Director of the Competitiveness Office of Abu Dhabi (COAD), part of ADDED, said, “At COAD, our main objective is to address strategic initiatives to improve the business environment and ease of doing business in the Emirate. Launching phase 2 of ‘Investor Journey’ reflects our continuous efforts to improve business ecosystem to cement Abu Dhabi’s regional and global competitiveness.”