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Thugge, who spoke during 61st Biannual plenary hosted by the African Economic Research Consortium (AERC) in partnership with the CBK, pointed out that unreliable internet connectivity, especially in rural areas, and poor mobile network access remain significant hurdles for delivering seamless services to a broad customer base.

“The FinTech sector in Africa is still young, and this comes with several challenges, including low customer trust, particularly among the unbanked population who often view banking as a service reserved for the middle class,” Thugge noted.

He highlighted that the sector’s growth is under constant threat from cyber-attacks and suffers from scalability issues, such as limited access to capital markets and digital literacy gaps.

Thugge acknowledged the complex regulatory environments across different African countries, which complicate the efforts to create a unified market for FinTech services.

However, despite these obstacles, the CBK Governor expressed optimism for the future, pointing to research forecasting a 13-fold growth in Africa’s FinTech market by 2030.

The market is expected to reach $65 billion, driven by a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 32 percent.

AERC Executive Director Victor Murinde on his part underscoring the significance of the week long session in Nairobi as one that will have far reaching effects on fast tracking FinTech growth in the continent.

One of the highlights of the event will be a high-level Practitioners Round Table, organized in collaboration with the Kenya Bankers Association (KBA).

The roundtable will bring together leading FinTech players from East Africa to discuss the integration of FinTech into the banking sector.

Murinde emphasized that the roundtable would provide a platform for commercial banking leaders to exchange insights on overcoming challenges, adopting digital transformation, and leveraging FinTech to advance financial inclusion.

“The role of digital transformation in enabling financial inclusion cannot be overstated,” Murinde said.

“By exploring strategic partnerships and creating an enabling regulatory environment, we can deepen financial inclusion and unlock untapped economic potential in the region.”

Kenya, Nigeria, Egypt, and South Africa are currently at the forefront of the FinTech evolution in Africa, leading the way globally in the adoption and integration of digital financial services.

The AERC session serves as an important platform for stakeholders to discuss how to address the sector’s challenges and accelerate the adoption of FinTech across the continent.

 

Source: Capital FM
By PHIDEL KIZITO on December 2^nd 2024