Mauritius to host Africa FinTech Festival from 13 to 15 October
11 Oct 2021
With a vision to creating learning opportunities and building connections around the FinTech realm in Africa, the Mauritius Africa FinTech Hub (MAFH), supported by the Economic Development Board (EDB), will be hosting the Africa FinTech Festival (AFF) as an online and in a free-for-all format conference to be held from 13 to 15 October 2021.
Conceptualised by the Africa FinTech Network (AFN), a platform that unites Africa FinTech leaders, organisations and stakeholders through their country associations, the AFF was initially launched in 2018. The first edition took place in Nigeria, around the theme of ‘FinTech In Africa’, while the second was held in Uganda in 2019 covering ‘The Role of FinTech’ and how it evolved in Africa and its contribution to the economy.
This year, for the third edition, the AFF is focusing on the solutions that are present on the ground, the highlights of the ecosystem’s successes, what has been achieved to date and providing an outlook on the future of FinTech as an industry. In addition, the Festival will provide an opportunity for all participants to learn about AFF’s strategies for its network, including how to drive partnerships and to raise funds to support FinTech businesses in Africa. The Festival will also address the issue of how regulation can enable FinTech and innovation in the continent.
The activities kicked off on 16 June with a virtual pre-event full day session on the theme ‘FinTech, Sustainability and Innovation: The power trio to fast-forward Africa’s growth’. The event was attended virtually by nearly 500 participants, with registrations from over 60 countries.
What to expect at this event?
With this new fully virtual and free-for-all format, AFN and MAFH aim to help stakeholders better dive into the Pan-African FinTech movement that is happening right now and follow through!
You can expect a 3-day agenda full of fiery panel discussions, inspiring keynotes, exciting fireside chats and key FinTech showcases amongst others! Topics addressed during the Festival will revolve around the following, amongst others:
- From Building to Bridging Socio-economic ecosystems in Africa
- University to Unicorn: Cultivating an Africa-First entrepreneurial generation
- Drivers of digital transformation in Sub-Saharan Africa
- Fintechs to the rescue –building new roads to compliance
- Industry First: Building the skills & marketplace for growth
- Funding: The Marriage with clauses?
The event is open to all the stakeholders in the FinTech and allied fields including entrepreneurs, SMEs, startups, corporations, universities, financial service providers, tech companies, investors and regulators.
Visit the africafintechfestival.org to see the updated agenda and to view full list of speakers as they are added.
Mauritius as an enabler of FinTech
Commenting on the AFF and the role it plays for Mauritius and the African continent, Faraz Rojid, Head of Financial Services at the EDB said, "Hosting the AFF 2021 is a badge of prestige for Mauritius and I would like to commend the AFN and MAFH for pioneering the organisation of this landmark event amid these testing times when the entire world is grappling and fighting the COVID pandemic.”
“FinTech has essentially transitioned from a disruptive threat to being a key enabler. The Government of Mauritius has really recognised the digital revolution and the fact that it unfolds an opportunity to leapfrog traditional economies. So, we are fully supportive of the AFF, and we are here to make sure it happens well," Faraz added.
In terms of the enabling framework in Mauritius, the FinTech industry on the island gained momentum in 2016 when the Government of Mauritius introduced the Regulatory Sandbox Licence. Since 2018, the EDB, as the quasi-regulator of the sandbox, has issued nine approvals for FinTechs spanning from ICOs, crypto exchanges, digital wallets, blockchain platforms, to P2P lending platforms.
Recently, the Government of Mauritius has announced a panoply of further measures in the Budget 2021-22 to stimulate further growth of FinTech on the island, with the Bank of Mauritius and Financial Services Commission to set up FinTech innovation hubs and digital labs, a Central Bank Digital Currency to be rolled out on a pilot basis and a dedicated QR code to be unveiled at the national level for digital payments, among others. The Government is also opening up Mauritius to attract FinTech entrepreneurs, with professionals now able to come to live and work in Mauritius for 10 years instead of 3 years, while the path to permanent residency has been fast-tracked.
An opportunity to showcase African innovation to the world
Speaking in advance of the event, Chief Executive Officer of MAFH, Michal Szymanski said,
“We are proud to be hosting the AFF in Mauritius as a member of the Africa FinTech Network, which we joined two years ago to share knowledge, learnings and understand ecosystems better to integrate various FinTech solutions.”
"The idea is to showcase African innovation to the rest of the world and how we can work for the benefit of people on the ground using technology in the financial services space. I would strongly encourage all of those with an interest in the development of FinTech solutions for the African continent to join us for this exciting event,” Michal added.
Dr Segun Aina, President of the AFN, concluded, “The festival is a platform to bring together thought leaders from Africa and beyond to provide solutions, suggestions and ideas on ease of innovation, tech and support mechanisms to advance the contributions of the African FinTech ecosystem towards fast-tracking the development of African economies.”
