CIBN, others sign agreement on Fintech certification

The Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN) has signed a collaboration agreement with FinTechNGR and Financial Services Innovators (FSI) on Fintech certification.

According to the agreement, Ken Opara, President and Chairman, CIBN, said the three institutions have come together to award Fintech certification which provides an excellent opportunity to bridge the technical talent gap and indeed further drive the implementation of the competency framework in banking. and the financial industry in Nigeria.

He expressed the institute’s indebtedness to the Bankers Committee and the Central Bank of Nigeria for the institute’s appointment as the accrediting agency for the implementation of the competency framework.

“We are not taking it for granted and are determined to make a success of the mission that will not only lead to more knowledgeable professionals but improved service delivery,” he said.

Opara reiterated that CIBN’s role is to be the bridge that will create a positive handshake among all the players (banks, fintechs and other financial agents) in the financial industry through capacity building programmes, training, content development, mandates and good corporate governance guidelines.

Speaking at the signing ceremony in Lagos, CIBN Registrar and CEO Seye Awojobi practically said: “This is a journey that started in April 2017. That is when CIBN, Canada’s Digital Finance Institute and the FinTech staff put together what they called FinTech Nigeria in day.”

“It was the first FinTech conference in Africa which preceded the World Conference of Banking Institutions in Lagos in 2017 when we brought together all the systems and FinTech operators and people in Nigeria and I still commend Segun Aina who was the chairman.”

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He said it is a dream come true and it is the institute’s desire to use technology to drive skills, to make a difference and this is where the FinTechs groups come in.

“If you are not certified, your knowledge is not recognized as such. So what we have done today is the beginning of lifelong learning. Certification is a marriage with the one they dread a lot – the FinTech group, which the banks dread a lot and without them the future is not certain,” he said.

Awojobi further said: “This is a journey that started in April 2017. That is when CIBN, Canada’s Digital Finance Institute and the FinTech staff put together what they called FinTech Nigeria today. It was the first FinTech conference in Africa which preceded the World Conference of Banking Institutions in Lagos in 2017 when we brought together all systems and Fintech operators and people in Nigeria and I still commend Segun Aina who was the Chairman.

Today we put an end to the narrative that you can not only practice, but you can actually hold a certificate in that regard, and that is what brings this marriage.”

In his comments, Ade Bajomo, President, FINTECH Nigeria said: “It’s a collaboration, it’s a collaboration. We’re going to co-exist together. FinTechs will get bigger and banks will get bigger. FinTechs will disappear and some banks will disappear. So it’s coming to be the norm, but those who will succeed will be those who can adapt very quickly. The two need to coexist to create a better future, and no country needs it more than us, and to have it the certification competence can not only be good for FinTech’s development or the development of financial services through banks, but for our general ecosystem.”

“So I must say on behalf of FinTech Nigeria, 300 members we are extremely excited to be part of this, to deepen the community, to deepen the ecosystem, to create talent that will grow our financial services environment both in Nigeria, Africa which we are increasingly seeing around the world, he said.

Aituaz Kola-Oladejo, CEO FSI, in his comments said: “CIBN is truly a forward-looking institution. Today I would say that history has been written, not just the signing of an agreement. This is going to shape FinTech companies, not not just in Nigeria but across Africa. I see more players coming out of this program.”

Commenting on the official execution of the agreement, Uche Olowu, former president of CIBN said, “Certification is the way to go. CIBN is going higher and we must support it with programs and certifications that are global and world class.”