Growth of $6bn fintech landscape in focus at MWC Kigali

Mobile industry stakeholders will converge at GSMA’s Mobile World Congress in Kigali, Rwanda, to discuss how to deepen the continent’s $6 billion fintech market.

The MWC event will convene innovators and political leaders from across the continent. Conversations will focus on driving the digital economy forward and enabling socio-economic growth. Industry thought leaders and leading enterprises will host a range of keynotes and panel sessions focused on the four event themes: Connected Continent, The AI Future, FinTech, and Africa’s Digital DNA.

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In 2022, McKinsey revealed that the estimated revenues of the African fintech industry were around $4 billion to $6 billion, with average penetration levels between three and five percent. The consulting firm stated that growth in the industry would be concentrated in 11 key markets: Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, Egypt, Ghana, Kenya, Morocco, Nigeria, Senegal, South Africa, Tanzania, and Uganda.

Telcos on the continent have been making inroads into expanding fintech services by offering mobile money services. “With several mobile money providers now holding a licence to operate in Nigeria, the country has seen a rapid rise in the use of digital financial services,” GSMA revealed in its ‘State of the Industry Report on Mobile Money (2024)’ report.

Confirmed speakers include Sunil Taldar, Airtel Africa’s chief executive officer; Mats Granryd, GSMA’s Director General; Doreen Bogdan-Martin, the ITU’s Secretary-General; and Serigne Dioum, MTN Group’s FinTech CEO, indicating the event’s fintech leaning.

Also, the GSMA Ministerial Programme, the first on the continent, will be hosted at MWC Kigali. It will convene the most influential telecommunications leaders from across Africa to discuss policy and regulatory topics key to the region.

Organisers stated, “The MWC Kigali keynotes will cover some of Africa’s most pressing digital connectivity issues. Keynote 1 will discuss how digital technologies are driving socio-economic development in Africa to address the continent’s unique challenges.

Read also: Here are 10 fintechs driving e-payment boom in Nigeria

“Keynote 2 will focus on the transformative potential of AI, including how it can drive sustainable and inclusive growth across Africa. Keynote 3 will see speakers explore the rapid evolution of Africa’s Fintech landscape and the technologies impacting investment opportunities. While Keynote 4 will explore how the evolving content landscape is allowing African content creators to be heard and celebrated globally.”