Biannual Africa FinTech Summit Set to Hold in Lagos for the First Time

Key stakeholders, investors, and policymakers in the FinTech sector are set to converge this November in Lagos for Africa’s premier FinTech event, the Africa FinTech Summit.

The meteoric rise of Fintech across Africa is transforming lives and economies, unleashing innovation, and propelling an upsurge of financial inclusion #AFTSLagos pic.twitter.com/NZivrOuQGh

— Africa Fintech Summit. #AFTSDC2022 (@AfriFintech) September 17, 2018

This is the second summit this year (earlier edition took place in Washington D.C. in April and featured leading policy makers, c-suite business executives, start-ups, and investors), and for the first time ever, it would be coming to Lagos, Nigeria on November 8-9, 2018.

Organized by Dedalus Global, an investment and strategy advisory firm, the 2-day biannual summit is designed to bring together innovators, investors, policy makers and other key stakeholders in the FinTech sector to discuss technologies transforming finance on the continent, debate regulatory policies, compare best practices, and forge new Africa-focused ventures.

Nigeria’s pulsating commercial capital is a driving force behind the continent’s economic dynamism and entrepreneurial spirit #AFTSLAGOS pic.twitter.com/MBjxGlbLfh

— Africa Fintech Summit. #AFTSDC2022 (@AfriFintech) September 17, 2018

Speaking on the decision to bring the Summit to Lagos, the Chairman of the Summit, Leland Rice, said:

Lagos is an ideal host city; it’s an epicenter of Africa’s fintech revolution and the driving force behind the continent’s entrepreneurial spirit. The successes of companies such as Paga, Flutterwave, Mines.io, and Paystack have strategically positioned Lagos as the destination of choice for investors.

Also speaking on the proposed event, Tayo Oviosu, the founder of Paga—a notable FinTech company, who happened to be a speaker at the summit’s Washington D.C. edition said that, “the Africa Fintech Summit in Washington D.C. provided valuable insights into the FinTech space and connected me with key players in the industry. I look forward to the Lagos edition.”

In April 2018, the Africa Fintech Summit (AFTS) gathered innovators and investors from across Africa and the US in Washington, D.C., to discuss the technologies transforming finance on the continent. #AFTSLAGOS pic.twitter.com/pzl3fpLBh3

— Africa Fintech Summit. #AFTSDC2022 (@AfriFintech) September 17, 2018

The two-day event is expected to feature investor missions from the US, UK, and UAE, an Alpha Expo featuring the most exciting startups and entrepreneurs in Nigeria, a half-day blockchain masterclass, and an awards ceremony. Also, key stakeholders have been highlighted to be speakers at the summit. They include Chief Economist of PwC Nigeria, Dr. Andrew S. Nevin; Managing General Partner of EchoVC, Eghosa Omoigui; CEO of Diamond Bank, Uzoma Dozie; Founder of Flutterwave, Iyinoluwa Aboyeji; and CEO of PayStack, Shola Akinlade.

According to the Summit’s Chairman, “the first edition of the Summit in D.C. was a launch pad for several milestone fintech deals struck among its delegates in the months after the event”. It is expected that the Lagos edition would build on these successes and facilitate further capital raises.