The Ecobank Group has announced that Touch and Pay, a Nigeria-based fintech, has won the 2022 edition of the Ecobank Fintech Challenge.
This
announcement was made at the grand finale at Ecobank’s headquarters in Lomé,
presided by Cina Lawson, the Minister of Digital Economy and Transformation,
Republic of Togo.
Touch
and Pay took home a $50,000 cash prize, the largest no-strings attached fintech
cash prize in Africa.
Touch
and Pay processes microtransactions across Africa, such as paying for bus
rides. Today, Touch and Pay has over 2 million users who help 500,000 people
make payments every day.
The
winner and the other five finalists were also inducted into the Ecobank Fintech
Fellowship – a unique programme that gives the Fintech Fellows the opportunity
to explore potential commercial partnerships with the Bank, such as integrating
with Ecobank’s pan-African banking platforms and scaling their fintech
businesses across Ecobank’s 33 African markets.
The
five other finalists for the 2022 edition are:
Cauri
Money, Senegal
DizzitUp,
Togo
MaishaPay,
Democratic Republic of Congo
Moni
Africa, Nigeria
Paycode,
South Africa
Ade
Ayeyemi, Chief Executive Officer, Ecobank Group congratulating the
finalists, said: “This year's six finalists have set the bar high at this Grand
Finale. Their innovations are revolutionising the financial payments landscape
in Africa and advancing financial inclusion. It is an honour for the Ecobank
Group to partner with them and jointly transform the financial landscape of our
continent.” Mr Ayeyemi also expressed Ecobank’s “profound appreciation to all
our partners especially Arise, the gold sponsor of the 2022 Challenge, as well
as to the Jury who worked tirelessly to evaluate the finalists and select the
winner.”
Gavin
Tipper, the CEO of Arise, a gold partner and co-sponsor of the challenge,
said: “Arise extends its congratulations to the finalists and the winner for
the creativity and innovation they displayed. The Ecobank Fintech Challenge has
become an important platform for supporting fintech innovators and encouraging
bold solutions to advancing financial inclusion in Africa. The talent on offer
in this year's pool of finalists once again exceeded expectations, and we look
forward to seeing how the different products transform financial services on
the continent.”
Oluwole
Michael, CEO of Touch and Pay expressing deep satisfaction at winning the
Fintech Challenge, commented: “We at Touch and pay (TAP) are excited about the
opportunity given to us to work with Ecobank, a Pan-African bank operating
across Africa. This plugs into our vision of helping 250 million Africans
process cash-based transactions digitally making them truly cashless and
providing true credit facilities for merchants, retailers, and customers.”
In
addition to the pitch by each of the six finalists and a keynote address by
Cina Lawson, highlights at the grand finale included panel discussions
on ‘Sustaining and deepening investor interest in African Fintech in the
face of global economic crisis: what should investors, Fintech companies and
governments do?’ and ‘Ensuring Fintech-friendly regulations that accelerate
start-up growth and maturity: what is the best way forward for Africa.’
Almost
4,000 start-ups have participated in the five editions of Ecobank Fintech
Challenge since it was launched in 2017.
Since
then, 52 Fintechs have been inducted into the Ecobank Fintech Fellowship.
The
2022 Challenge was supported by partners including Arise, Konfidants, Tech
Cabal, Africa Fintech Network and ALX Ventures.
Source: ClassFMonline.com