Muscat: As part of research promotion initiatives, the College of Banking and Financial Studies (CBFS) conducted the second International Conference on Banking, Finance, and Business – ICBFB 2023 on March 15-16 at its Bausher campus.
Nasser bin Khamis al Jashmi, Secretary-GFeneral of the Ministry of Finance was the guest of honor for the conference.
ICBFB 2023 was organized in strategic partnership with the Central Bank of Oman and Oman Banks Association and with knowledge partners of the University of Strathclyde, The London Institute of Banking and Finance, and the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India.
The main theme of ICBFB 2023 was “Enhancing Economic Competitiveness in the Digital Era: Innovative Models and Strategies”. The conference presented a diversity of projects, presentations, and discussions demonstrating the impact of digital transformation on the global economy.
The primary aim of the conference was to establish a professional platform where academics, practitioners, and experts could exchange their knowledge and research experiences to develop new business models and cope with the disruptive technologies that are causing dramatical changes in the global economy.
The keynote speakers offered insights on the journey towards a more sustainable digital economy.
The first day was addressed by four eminent speakers including Tahir bin Salim al Amri, Executive President of CBO, who addressed about the Fintech in Oman: opportunities and challenges. Ahmed al Musalmi, Chief Executive Officer of Sohar International, discussed the digital transformation in the Banking sector.
Abdulaziz al Karousi, director General for digital transformation and sector empowerment, the Ministry of Transport, Communication, and Information Technology, reviewed Government's digital transformation program.
Aniket Sunil Talati, President of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India, shed a light on the shift of focus from “Know Your Client” to “Know Your Data” in the field of auditing, accounting, and financial reporting.
The conference accepted diverse papers under the sub-themes of Banking and Financial Services, Finance & Economics, and Business, Technology & Entrepreneurship. The College has received 108 submissions from 25 different countries from academics, researchers, doctoral students, and practitioners in the field of banking, finance, economics, and business. All these papers were evaluated through peer review by the conference Scientific Committee based on a set of criteria. Out of the total submissions, 84 research papers are selected for presentation in the conference in four parallel sessions under the sub-theme of banking and finance (30), finance and economics (26), and business technology and entrepreneurship (28). The overall acceptance rate is 78% for the conference submissions. Around 217 authors were involved in these 84 papers from 21 countries across the globe. Out of these, 91 authors from ten countries have been registered for paper presentation in ICBFB 2023. Besides the participation from Oman, 54% of the presenters were from abroad, in particular from Bahrain, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Iraq, Tunisia, India, the Netherlands, Nigeria, and the United Kingdom.
Prof. Amany Elbanna, Professor of Information Systems, Royal Holloway University of London, UK, highlighted the key strategies for growth and gaining competitive advantage in a world characterized by volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity. In his keynote speech, Dr. Mejdal Alqahtani, Professor & Vice President of the Innovation Unit at King Saud University, demonstrated the most in-demand digital skills and competencies in the current digital world.
There will be best paper awards each under the theme of banking and finance, finance and economics and business technology and entrepreneurship. The abstract of all accepted papers will be included in the conference proceedings. Based on the outcome of the conference, a policy recommendation report will be submitted to the appropriate authorities after the conference.
Eight top-rated international peer-reviewed scientific journals published by Emerald, and Sage are partnered with this conference.
The high-quality paper will be selected by these publishers to publish in their journals. A special issue of selected papers will be published in a special issue by Journal of Financial Services Marketing. These journals are indexed by Scopus and the Web of Sciences.
The fourth volume of CBFS edited book series on “Diversification of Oman economy for sustainable development: strategic issues and imperatives” published by Springer Nature was released on this occasion. CBFS is the first higher education institution in Oman to publish an edited by an international publisher.
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