By Chioma Obinagwam
Nigeria has been described as a leading country in the Financial Technology (FinTech) space in the world.
Executive Director, Systemspecs Limited, Mr. AdeRemi Atanda, stated this recently at the Centre for Financial Journalism (CFJ)-Association of Corporate Affairs of Managers of Banks (ACAMB) Business Forum held in Lagos.
According to him, many things have happened in the fintech landscape in Nigeria that have not happened elsewhere in the world.
However, he lamented that the success stories in this area has not been adequately captured and celebrated. This, he said, is because we are not schooled in value narratives.
He advised that we should understand the paradigm that shape narratives. This way, we can capture the successes achieved so far in the FinTech landscape.
He said despite the successes achieved so far, even well acknowledged by advanced countries, there is still a lot of room for improvement.
Mr. Atanda said that Fintech is part of the digital age which evolved partly as a result of revolution in mobile telecommunications.
Dwelling on the theme of the Business Forum FinTech and Financial Services Delivery in the Digital Age, he said that FinTech which is driven by data, is transforming the ways financial and business transactions are now carried out.
He noted that pay-tech is just one aspect of FinTech, and virtually the only aspect that we are still dealing with now as there are many other aspects that are yet to be integrated into the entire architecture of FinTech.
According to him, it is not only the banking sector that requires the services of Fintech providers. He said that insurance, pension schemes, medical services, oil and gas and even agriculture require FinTech to drive them. There is huge potential yet untapped that can help to move the entire system forward to new stage of development, he said.
He optimistically said that indeed Nigeria can really lead the entire world by being at the forefront of FinTech, providing veritable model for others to follow.
He advised the media to consciously look for success stories in Nigeria and Africa in the FinTech space that can serve as a narrative for the rest of the world to follow and learn from.
“Many things will still shape and re-shape the future we see before us. We should be ready to be part and indeed at the forefront of the global movement in FinTech space,” Atanda stressed.
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