On April 11, tech and finance leaders, policy makers, and investors from across Africa and the United States will gather at the Institute of Peace in Washington to discuss the future of financial technology.
The Africa Fintech Summit (AFTS) will open with an address by Jim Ovia, Chairman and Founder of Zenith Bank and one of the continent’s most prominent entrepreneurs. Speakers will include Worku Gachou, Managing Director for Africa at OPIC; Olugbenga Agboola, Co-Founder and CEO of Flutterwave; Iyin Aboyeji, Founder of Street Capital; Nick Talwar, Partner at APIS; Stanley Jacob, Chairman of the Committee of e-Banking Industry Heads; ‘Lanre Osibona, Senior Advisor on ICT to the President of Nigeria; Bunmi Akinyemiju, CEO of Venture Garden Group; Sheldon Himelfarb, President and CEO of PeaceTech Lab, and other entrepreneurs.
Over $2 billion in private equity and venture capital funding will be represented, along with startups from across the continent and representatives from several African central banks. Focus areas include the future of banking, venture capital, policy and regulation, blockchain, digital identity, remittances, and financial inclusion. A New-Venture Competition will feature select startups presenting to a panel of investors, and a workshop presented by Insider—a public relations firm for global startup entrepreneurs—will offer fintech founders a crash course on building thought leadership and visibility in the media.
The AFTS is organized by Dedalus Global, a strategic advisory based in Washington and Lagos, in partnership with PeaceTech Lab, a collaborative project with Amazon Web Services, SAP NS2, and C5. A reception at the PeaceTech Lab—the world’s first accelerator for technologies that promote peace—will follow the Summit. Strategic partners of the AFTS include the Corporate Council on Africa, the US-Nigeria Council, the American Business Council, and Congo Business Network.
Congo Business Network is an international network of Congolese professionals and entrepreneurs. The network has seasoned professionals and entrepreneurs who are based in such cities as Hong Kong, Montreal, New York, Paris, and Kinshasa. And they have experience from companies ranging from Microsoft, BNP Paribas, Deloitte, Ernst & Young, to TV5Monde. The organization is led by a former United States Marine named Noel K. Tshiani, president of Agere Global, an investment and strategy advisory firm based in New York.
The AFTS is the premier global initiative dedicated to fintech in Africa. It is held each April in Washington (during the week of the Spring Meetings of the World Bank Group and the International Monetary Fund), and each November in a different city in Africa (most recently Lagos). Supported by an advisory board of thought leaders and fintech pioneers, the AFTS is a unique space where ideas are explored, investments mobilized, and collaborations formed across sectors and geographies.
To learn more about the event or to register, visit http://africafintechsummit.com.
Eric Tshikuma | Zoom Eco
