The Financial Academy concluded its participation in Money20/20 Middle East 2026 in Riyadh by closing the Financial Market Innovation Hackathon, an accompanying event it organised with the Capital Market Authority and with Sahab Financial as strategic partner, drawing more than 500 applicants since its launch, according to the Saudi newspaper Ajel.
From that pool, 60 participants were selected and split into multidisciplinary teams, with 12 ideas reaching the final stage after work by developers and specialists in data science, design and the financial sector. The judging panel, composed of experts and specialists, awarded first place to team Idraj, second place to team Hawkmatek and third place to team Flok.
The hackathon was designed to channel modern technologies into practical solutions for real challenges facing the Saudi financial market, part of a broader effort to raise the sector's competitiveness and support the goals of Saudi Vision 2030.
On the sidelines of the conference, the Academy ran an exhibition stand presenting its training and professional programmes and initiatives aimed at developing human capital in the financial sector. Mazen bin Turki Al-Sudairi, Chairman of the Capital Market Authority, visited the stand and was briefed on the initiatives on display.
Together with STC Bank, the Academy also delivered a series of awareness sessions across the conference days covering the future of the financial sector, jobs and skills for 2030, competency testing and assessment, the value of professional certifications, innovation in finance, financial decision-making, professional readiness and ethics, fraud prevention and cybersecurity.