African Banking Technology Conference highlights expansion potential

Over 180 bankers and technology experts participated in the African Banking Technology Conference in Nairobi over 5-8 February, which focussed on the effective use of technology to meet the growing demands of existing banking clients – and the untapped potential of the continent’s unbanked majority.

Over 30 African and international experts made conference and international presentations on a wide range of technology and business strategy topics.

A wide range of African countries were represented at the conference, including Burundi, Rwanda, Uganda, Ghana, Tanzania, Ethiopia, South Africa and Zimbabwe. Speakers and delegates also came from Canada, UK, Egypt, USA, Israel, Denmark, India and Israel.

Terry Davidson, MD of Kenya Commercial Bank and Kitili Mbathi, MD of Stanbic Uganda, were among the keynote speakers from the region, and both highlighted the positive results their organisations have achieved through the effective application of information and communication technology.

Dr Bitange Ndemo, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Information and Communication Technology, who officially opened the conference, urged financial institutions and other service providers to embrace and develop technology solutions for the rural population. “The Ministry is delighted that this conference has gathered over 30 local and international experts to share their knowledge with delegates from throughout Africa, to the benefit of our expanding banking and micro-finance sector.

“There is undeniable growth potential in this sector of the market and it will be interesting to see how the various approaches pan out. One thing in common is that these potential customers will need plastic cards, ATM access across the country and very competitively priced products. Paynet’s PesaPoint network has begun to meet this demand by setting up 110 ATMs in 43 towns. And I’m delighted to learn that some of the smaller towns, which were expected to be low-volume performers, have in fact been the best performers in the volume of use,” said Dr Ndemo

Over 20 suppliers of banking equipment and solutions participated in the exhibition, and reported high-quality sales leads. Electronic Card Services, Paynet Group and Technology Associates were awarded the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Best Stand Awards, respectively. Making the awards, AITEC Chairman Sean Moroney commended the winners for the effectiveness of their displays and the efforts of their staff in welcoming delegates onto their stands.

Lead Sponsor of the event was Paynet Group, a leading e-banking services provider in the region. The Paynet Group includes Paynet Kenya, Electronic Financial Technologies and PesaPoint,

A 2nd African Banking Technology Conference this year, organised by AITEC Africa, will next be held in Lagos over 17-19 October, and will return to Nairobi again in February 2008.

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