| QFC ANNUAL REPORT 2023 QATAR SCORES ON THE WORLD STAGE Qatars exceptional delivery of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 TM is not only a demonstration of the nations prowess in hosting world-class events but also tells a tale of a journey into technological and human innovation that had a major positive bearing on the nations digital future. Hailed as the most connected tournament, harnessing technology and innovation throughout, such as the use of AI-assisted wearables to monitor players health, innovative cooling technology in stadiums and other public places, besides numerous other tech-centric interventions, the event was monumental in propelling the national digital transformation. Its ripple effect was strongly felt across all sectors in Qatar, including construction, hospitality, tourism and sport, providing further momentum to technological advancements and progress, fundamentally increasing the competitiveness and diversification of the economy. As an enabler of business and investment in Qatar, pursuing opportunities to strengthen Qatars economy, QFC remained active in capitalising this momentum throughout the year 2023. The launch of the Innovation Dome stands as a testament to QFCs relentless pursuit to realise national aspirations, enabling Dohas transformation into a global centre of excellence for innovation. Designed in alignment with Qatar Central Banks (QCB) Fintech Strategy, the strategic platform embraces the values of collaboration, creativity, and excellence to build an ecosystem for global fintech leaders and entrepreneurs to participate in and leverage from. Breaking new ground in Qatars financial landscape, QFC, with the support of QCB, Qatar Development Bank, Qatar FinTech Hub, and other organisations, introduced the Digital Assets Lab as the inaugural initiative under its Innovation Dome. Designed to spur open innovation, research and development in digital assets and Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT), the Lab lays the foundation for the development of a digital assets sector in Qatar. The Lab is set to welcome its first cohort of participants in 2024 including fintech startups, financial institutions, technology providers and members of academia from all over the world. TOWARDS CONTINUED GROWTH IN 2024 Following another year of strong growth and progress, QFCs preparedness and energy to deepen the impact and value of its platform remains at an all-time high. The 2030 Strategy, coupled with its new core values of Quality, Future Focus, Customer Focus, and Authenticity, will serve as the roadmap for QFCs forthcoming initiatives and reinforce its role as the premier financial and business hub in the region. Qatar has a strong and resilient economy, identified as one of the fastest-growing in the region by the World Bank in 2023, and ranked 12th amongst 64 countries - most of which are developed countries - in The World Competitiveness Yearbook 2023, issued by the International Institute for Management Development (IMD). Such recognition demonstrates the favourability and competitiveness of the nations market and against this backdrop, QFC will continue to broaden its efforts to encourage and welcome leading firms, startups and entrepreneurs from around the world to set up operations, here in the State of Qatar. QFC remains committed to innovation and leveraging emerging technologies to meet market demands and maintain competitive advantage. The organisation looks forward to contributing to key state initiatives like the Joint Committee for Financial Sector Development and the continuous enhancement of the Digital Assets Lab Framework, among other significant projects, to diversify Qatars economy. TOWARDS CONTINUED GROWTH IN 2024 | QFC ANNUAL REPORT 2023