Qatar has strengthened its position as a global hub for Islamic financial technology, ranking sixth worldwide by market size in the Global Islamic FinTech (GIFT) Report 2025–2026.
The report estimates Qatar’s Islamic FinTech market at $3.1 billion for 2024–2025 and projects growth at a compound annual rate of 9% to reach $4.8 billion by 2029. Published by DinarStandard and Elipses in collaboration with the Qatar Financial Centre Authority (QFC), the study also ranks Qatar seventh globally for its overall business environment supporting Islamic FinTech.
The results align with Qatar’s Third Financial Sector Strategy, which aims to expand access to technology-driven financial services and position the country as a regional FinTech leader.
Henk Jan Hoogendoorn, Chief Financial Services Sector Officer at QFC, said the centre continues to foster a supportive operating environment aligned with national priorities to advance innovation and broaden access to digital financial solutions.
Globally, the Islamic FinTech market is projected to grow from $198 billion in 2024 to approximately $341 billion by 2029, reflecting an annual growth rate of 11.5%. Six markets — Saudi Arabia, Iran, Malaysia, the UAE, Indonesia and Kuwait — dominate the sector, each exceeding $3.1 billion in transaction volume and collectively accounting for around 93% of global activity.
Despite strong momentum, the report highlights challenges including limited access to capital, regulatory complexity, compliance costs, high customer acquisition expenses and cross-border operational pressures. It also underscores the need to enhance consumer awareness of Sharia-compliant digital financial products.
Industry experts expect 2026 to mark a shift from experimentation to scaled implementation, with clearer commercial models emerging, particularly in digital assets that support transparent, Sharia-aligned payment and settlement processes.
For Qatar, continued ecosystem development and regulatory positioning are expected to play a central role in attracting FinTech firms and investment, reinforcing its ambition to diversify its financial services sector and expand its footprint in the global Islamic finance ecosystem.
