The 6th edition of Nigeria Fintech Week hosts players for industry forums, masterclasses, pitches and more
The 6thth edition of Nigeria Fintech Week (NFW2022) held in Lagos from October 25th until the 28thth, 2022. The event brought together key fintech players, regulators, top brands, technology enthusiasts and professionals for a week of insightful, fun and engaging activities at the Landmarks Center in Lagos. It was organized by the Fintech Association of Nigeria and Fintech Associates Limited.
The theme of NFW2022 was “Navigating the next normal: sustainable impact on fintech, e-government and emerging technologies” and this put the spotlight on many critical issues facing the fintech ecosystem in Nigeria.
While delivering the opening address, Ade Bajomo, President, FintechNGRemphasized the importance of the event theme stating that “digital transformation without sustainability and impact on the wider ecosystem is irrelevant to the dynamics of the 21st century.St century”.
In addition, Bajomo argued that the Nigerian Fintech industry had been a trailblazer in the digitally transforming world, but that there was still huge room for growth and “new innovations” in sectors such as AgriTech, Insurtech, EdTech, PropTech and Blockchain adoption. In his words, “despite significant advances in payments, lending and WealthTech, we are still largely scratching the surface when it comes to deep technology revolution”.
From the networking breakfast, exhibition tours, panel sessions and product presentations from startups to fire chats, masterclasses, the Fintech Industry Forum and a raffle where one of the attendees won a Huawei notepad, #NFW2022 was an interesting experience for both online and on-site attendees.
One of those present, David Odeh shared on LinkedIn: “I am glad that I was able to attend the Nigeria Fintech Week. The largest industry event in Africa promoting innovation, business alliances and ecosystem transformation. It was a huge networking opportunity for me because practically every participant in the fintech sector was present.
Another participant, Mmerichukwu Anosike posted“I attended the Nigeria Fintech Week 2022 held in Lagos where I heard from experienced personnel like Chuta Chimezie and others, who spoke about the impact of web3 technology, from #cryptocurrency to #nfts and others, especially how they affect our quality of life with amazing products and services.”
82 speakers from different countries shared relevant insights in 32 keynote addresses, fire chats and master classes. Here are some of the key takeaways:
“The problem of monetizing an African consumer is really about identifying the core problems and creating appropriate solutions. Once that is done, traction will follow.” – Ajibade Laolu-Adewale, CEO, Digital Solutions & Fintechs, Wema Bank
“Ecosystem play is critical. Reinventing the wheel does not create value, it is better to utilize already available systems than to start from scratch. That way you reduce costs and your profit margins can increase.” – ‘DeRemi Atanda, MD, Remita
“I don’t think for us to scale as an industry, POS is the only solution – to withdraw cash other than ATMs, to shop and do business. There are services we can put in the hands of merchants that are lower than the cost of BUCKET.” – Aituaz Kola-Oladejo, ED, FSI
“Fintech and Regtech have an important role to play in the digitization of an economy and should not be waved away or seen as something to put barriers against. Instead, they should be embraced and accommodated as part of the strategy for a digital economy.” – Andrew Davis, IFC
“Nigeria’s Fintech market remains heavy on innovation around payments, but there is a need to integrate MSMEs at the center of our ecosystem and motivate them to stay and do business online.” – Lee Maina, Chief Solution Architect, South Africa Region, Huawei
“Security is a major concern for fintechs and financial institutions, but it is a shared responsibility. Therefore, fintechs and businesses must implement a security-first approach in the development of any application or technology. Most of the attacks and breaches in recent times are not infrastructure related. Cloud providers can actually secure the infrastructure and make sure there are firewalls, but if there are vulnerabilities in the application, you can still get hacked.” – Stephen Okoye, CTO, inq. Digital.
The impact of Nigeria Fintech Week this year was even greater because of the powerful sponsors that continue to support the event. NFW2022’s impressive lineup of sponsors includes; Mastercard, Zenith Bank, Huawei, Interswitch, eTranzact, Remita, 9PSB, Meta, NowNow, SAS, Banwo & Ighodalo, Branch, Binance, Alat, Soft Alliance, Wema Bank, Stanbic IBTC, Udo Udoma & Belo Osagie, Sterling Bank, AFEX , inq. Digital, Ecobank, The ROOM, FairMoney, MainOne, PayMasta, O’dua Investment Ltd, Kora, LBank, CoinNewsExtraTv, ARM, Maxut, Jackson, Etti & Edu, Alliance Law Firm, AELEX, Convexity, NEAR Protocol, Metart Africa, Opolo Global Innovation, Africhange, Financial Services Innovators (FSI), WhisperSMS, Incash, SIGMA, UNICAF, WomenInDefi, Softpay, Fast Credit, Emtech, MOMO PSB, Zoracom and Brandlife Digital. McKinsey & Company, as well as regulators such as CBN, NIBSS and NCC were also knowledge and ecosystem partners.
Nigeria’s top media brands partnered with Nigeria Fintech Week to increase publicity and impact. The media partners are Proshare, Techcabal, SDM, CitiMobileMedia, TechEconomy, Folham Nig. Ltd, Nairametrics and Financial Inclusion.
On the last day of NFW2022, Dr. Babatunde Obrimah, COO of FintechNGR, appreciated the FintechNGR Board of Directors and the Event Planning Committee for their efforts and support in making the event a success. His closing remarks also highlighted some of the ecosystem-shaping projects initiated by FintechNGR, such as the DigiQuip project that equips people with digital skills that are valuable in the career market.
If you missed the event, you can watch replays of key sessions via YouTube. If you are interested in partnership/sponsorship or would like your brand to participate in the 2023 edition of Nigeria Fintech Week, please email to [email protected] or call +2349030003013. Also keep your eyes peeled on the NFW website, www.nigeriafintechweek.organd follow @nigeriafintechweek across social media platforms and @fintechweekng on Twitter for updates.
