The Philippines strengthens its regional fintech presence with the first ASEAN Fintech Festival

The Philippines is strengthening its regional presence in the technology space which Digital Pilipinas Festival (DPF) takes place 17.-21. October, kicking off a month-long celebration of digital adoption in the ASEAN region with hopes of building an anti-fragile system.

It also supports the growth of the country’s digital economy, which is expected to reach P5 trillion by 2030.

Throughout the week, DPF will also bring together more than 200 prominent ASEAN leaders from the public and private sectors, including regulators, CEOs, CTOs, CIOs, venture capitalists, investors, technology and digital innovators, cutting-edge startup founders, entrepreneurs and senior politicians.

DPF will kick off the month-long ASEAN Fintech Festival and will be followed by similar festivals in Cambodia, Thailand, the annual Singapore Fintech Festivaland Indonesia.

The DPF consists of two parts: the World FinTech Festival-Philippines (WFF-PH) in the morning which will highlight the development and advancement of fintech and various types of technology in the ASEAN region; and the initiation Philippine Fintech Festival (PFF) in the afternoon which will focus on the challenges, issues and innovations country specific to the Philippines.

“DPF envisions making the Philippines a powerful player in the ASEAN region,” says Cupid Maclangsummons by Digital Pilipinas, World Fintech Festival-Philippines (WFF-PH) and PFF. “The Philippine digital economy, which economists have predicted will reach a value of US$92 billion by 2030, is poised to make our country even more competitive in the regional FinTech and other technology areas.”

“Together, Digital Pilipinas and PFF constitute the country’s largest Digital Economies Festival,” adds Maclang.

The World FinTech Festival-Philippines (WFF-PH) sessions in the morning will highlight the progress of various types of technology in the ASEAN region. Government and industry leaders from countries as diverse as Hungary, Israel and Singapore will fly in to share their best practices and seek collaboration on trends such as regional transactions, e-commerce proliferation, cyber security and AI and data protection, among others.

Meanwhile, PFF’s afternoon workshops will bring together sector stakeholders, regulators, legacy players, technologists and start-ups in individual technical working group discussions to address specific industry pain points – and then present their own unique solutions. PFF will also explore how technology can harness the enormous potentials that lie in the Philippines to improve industries, develop smart cities and create a brighter future.

WFF-PH and PFF are convened by Digital Pilipinas, the largest private sector movement to create a technology and innovation system aimed at renewing the country, in partnership with Elevandian organization founded by Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) to promote an open dialogue between the public and private sectors to promote fintech in the digital economy.

WFF-PH and PFF are also supported by the governments and fintech associations of Israel, Hungary, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore and Cambodia.

A major highlight during the 5-day series is the launch of the MAS Hackcelerator Program, powered by Digital Pilipinas and think tank Oliver Wyman, which will recognize ground-breaking innovations that advance society towards Web 3.0. Industry associations such as the Decentralized Ledger Technology Associations of the Philippines (DLTAP), insurtech and regtech associations and other relevant industry groups will also be launched.

All the events will showcase the unique nation-building capabilities and strengths of different types of new, innovative technologies: technology for government, mobility and logistics, smart and connected cities, energy, web 3.0 (blockchain, cryptocurrency, cyber security, NFT), open data and open finance, e-wallets, suptech, AI and big data, SME digitization and e-commerce, wealthtech, fintech, esg and green finance, insuretech and healthtech, and markettech.

Frontlining the events are top companies, including coins.ph; ADVANCE.AI; Supposedly; Brankas; ColFinancial; Digicoop; Ethics The Philippines; GCash; KPMG The Philippines; Ninja Van The Philippines; Paymongo, UnionBank, UNO Digital Bankand Startup Village. Other prominent institutions such as Mapua university, Fintech The Philippines association, BounceBackPH, FinScore, Tech Exactand GeiserMaclang has also given its support to the event.