Access – for Fintechs & Customers

Alan Kay, a computer scientist and pioneer in the design and development of the first modern windowed computer desktop interface, said “the best way to predict the future is to invent it,”.

Well, that invented future is here today and it’s awesome to see what it is has brought to humankind. Technological advancements, as seen today, have taken the world beyond the future of the future Alan Kay talked about and recent trends show what we are witnessing is just a minute fraction of what the future holds.

Talk about Artificial Intelligence (AI). It is here now and is still evolving, very much with the future in mind. The science behind AI is to make machines think like humans and do things considered smart. AI processes large amounts of data in ways unlike humans. It has improved information processing and decision making and is transforming every walk of life. There is AI in healthcare; retail and e-commerce; logistics and transportation; travel; real estate; and entertainment and gaming.

AI has also permeated finance and banking and assumed an increasingly important role in providing technologies for many useful purposes. Chatbots, for example, are replacing the front-desk scenes at banks as these AI-led machines provide next level digitized and customized interactive experiences to customers. AI is further being used to verify the identity of customers, set up accounts and provide guidance on available products. But the much border discussion of how technology has transformed traditional banking today is mind-blowing.

Fintech, which is a shortened combination of “financial technology”, is used to describe new technology that seeks to improve and automate the delivery and use of financial services. It is made up of specialized software and systems built for use on computers and smartphones. Fintech aims to help companies, business owners, and consumers better manage their financial operations, processes, and lives. Fintech companies use a variety of technologies, including AI.

Well, do you have a mobile app and do you transact some of your banking services on your mobile phone? Do you have a card that allows you to pay for services using a point of sale (POS) device, etc? Can you transfer money from your mobile money account unto your bank account and vice versa seamlessly? Are you able to shop and pay for goods and services online? Is your bank account linked to an app on your phone to allow you to access utility services like electricity or pay TV? That is Fintech at your door step and in its simplest form. That is the future and it is currently playing out and making the lives of most people simple.

The opportunities Fintech provides for product developers and banks is immense and is still evolving and so are the benefits and opportunities for those using them now and the many likely to come on board. In other words, innovating and expanding the borders of Fintech provides access to a first level of opportunity for players in the Fintech industry. The second level of opportunity is for the many customers who gain access to Fintech so their lives are improved. This dual access mission is being pursued on the continent and in Ghana by Access Bank.

“Access Bank is a thought leader in the Fintech space and we are creating partnership opportunities and improving our customer acquisition,” said Pearl Nkrumah, Executive Director, Retail & Digital Banking.

Access Bank, she said, has a long-standing vision to be the go-to bank regarding digital transformation, and to be a leader in the Fintech space,  a place where traditional banking and Fintech institutions interface.

In line with this, the bank is accelerating and broadening the deployment of POS/mPOS and ATMs. This is in addition to the promotion, development and utilization of a broader range of digital financial products and services in lending, pensions, savings and insurance to meet the varying needs of all segments of the financial market. Agency banking is also part of the Access Fintech agenda and the bank is facilitating this through partnerships and full digital enablement. The bank is currently working with 13 Fintechs to develop lending capabilities, collections and payments solutions. That is a sure way for Access Bank to predict the future – by inventing it today.

Available data shows that global investment in Fintech increased by more than 12,000% from $930 million in 2008 to $121.6 billion in 2020 with a record high of total global investment of $215.3 billion in 2019 alone. Africa’s share in this overall Fintech sector has also expanded quickly. There were currently over 1000 active Fintech businesses in Africa as of April 2022, up from 450 in 2020. Digital investments in Africa alone was estimated at US$994.40m in 2023 and the Digital Assets market is expected to show a revenue growth of 36.1% in 2024.

“These outlooks are strong indications that Fintech is the future and the new currency is data,” Pearl Nkrumah, Executive Director, Retail & Digital Banking said.

She mentioned that Access Bank’s objective to leverage these positive outlooks is to launch “The Fintech Festival” which will mainly target data as the new currency, relying on its use for credit scoring in lending and enhancing cross-border payments.

“With an ever-rising use of e-commerce and digital financing, there will be needs for additional technologies in Fintech, such as artificial intelligence and data to help support the rising demand,” she added.

Access Bank currently has a fully-fledged Fintech Unit to promote partnerships with Fintech companies and accelerate the Bank’s digital strategy. The bank has also strategically partnered the Africa Fintech Foundry (AFF) to fast-track growth of Fintech startups in Africa and expand their capacity to deliver relevant solutions to the financial excluded across the continent.

Regular financial literacy seminars that promote payment systems among industry groups, fintech businesses, and academic institutions are also key to the Fintech agenda at Access Bank. These include the W-initiative support for women entrepreneurs, youth banking, SME clinics to train and mentor small and medium firms and Access Bank’s Womenpreneur Pitch-a-ton Africa, which empowers female entrepreneurs with financial and business skills

Further to this is the approved well-structured framework for managing and handling customer complaints and customer experience issues at Access Bank. This framework, which is based on the Bank of Ghana’s Consumer Recourse Mechanism Policy, allows customers to lodge complaints, seek redress, and ensures timely and fair resolution of complaints, as well as provide feedback on the quality and efficiency of Fintech services received y customers from the bank.

The Fintech needs of the customers have been frequently measured through regular customer satisfaction surveys (CSS), product functionality surveys and mystery shopping activities. These tactics are constantly being used to weigh and balance user experience and fair pricing.  

The outlook for the Fintech space in Africa and Ghana is bright with multiple opportunities. Data from the World Bank suggests that 57% of Africans are unbanked and cash is still widely used for numerous transactions on the continent. Meanwhile, expected revenue for the Fintech industry in Africa is expected to reach around $12 Billion by 2025, with the Fintech sector being the most attractive to investors, enjoying about 43.4% of all startup investments. These statistics show, without a doubt, that Fintech opportunities abound on the continent and in Ghana and the remarkable progress made so far would be would be used to deepen, widen and promote opportunities for financial inclusion.

AI, super apps, big data, credit scoring, cybersecurity, enhancing cross-border transactions and payments, data protection and security, open banking, machine learning, regulatory advancement, and crypto, among many others, are the future of digital banking on the continent. Access Bank is well poised and leading the needed collaborations between FinTechs and financial institutions so opportunities that facilitate seamless transactions for customers are widened. 

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