RIYADH: Commercial Bank International, a corporate and retail bank headquartered in Dubai, has announced the official launch of their metaverse location, making it the first UAE bank to have a presence in the metaverse.
CBI is now among the few early adapting banks not only regionally, but globally too.
CBI’s virtual location can be accessed by visitors via Decentraland at cbi.dcl.eth or (63, -127) using the Decentraland map coordinates. The bank’s virtual location can also be accessed through portals, the bank said in a statement.
CBI will debut their virtual location next week as an Activation Partner when they participate in XVERSE, a space in GITEX 2022 dedicated exclusively to those embracing metaverse technology.
The event will take place from Oct. 10-14 at the Dubai World Trade Centre.
CBI have strategized a future facing agenda for the event, with all plans focused on further exploring the metaverse and its potential.
As part of the agenda, CBI, in partnership with homegrown UAE burger brand Pickl, will showcase a real time metaverse use case.
CBI and Pickl will demonstrate how the metaverse can further enable a digital economy.
“We are proud to be the first ever bank in the UAE and among the first in the Middle East to bring the metaverse experience to our customers and people,” Ali Al-Amri, the CEO of CBI said.
He added: “It’s testament to our strong support and belief in the country's vision of being a leader in innovation worldwide. We aim to enhance the integration of real and digital worlds, and we will continue to implement new digitization initiatives and advanced technologies to serve our customers better.”
Showcasing CBI’s metaverse location in a technology focused event such as GITEX 2022 aligns with CBI’s commitment towards supporting the digitization and innovation aspirations of the UAE, it said.
The Dubai Metaverse Strategy aims to create 40,000 virtual jobs over the next five years, as the city aims to become one of the top 10 global metaverse economies.
Crown Prince of Dubai and the Chairman of Dubai Executive Council Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, who officially launched the metaverse strategy, said that the technology will shape a new digital future for humanity, news agency WAM reported.
“Dubai is emerging as a major contributor to shaping a new global vision for advanced technology and a pioneer in adopting next-generation digital innovation,” said Sheikh Hamdan.
The metaverse strategy also aims to attract over 1000 companies in the significant field of blockchain and metaverse.
Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality are the two main enablers of the metaverse, and it has created 6,700 jobs, along with contributing $500 million to the economy of the UAE, the press release added.
