Kevin Nyango
TechInAfrica – There were 11 finalists officially announced to enter Ecobank Fintech Fellowship program to explore commercial partnerships with the Pan-African banking giant. Three out of 11 finalists; Nala, Virtual Identity, and Wallet.ng were expected to be the winners.
They eventually announced the winners on August 30, 2018, in Lome, one of Ecobank’s headquarters. Nala from Tanzania came out as the winner that beat the other 10 finalists while Virtual Identity from South Africa and Wallet.ng from Nigeria were the first and second runners. The winners received US$10,000, US$7,000, and US$5,000.
About the Winners
Nala—an offline-mobile money application based in Tanzania. The app enables multiple financial services connected to one application. Moreover, it allows multiple SIMS and users to manage their spending as well as take control of their finances.
The second winner, Virtual Identity—a platform that is designed to disrupt traditional customer onboarding for banks. It digitally creates a virtual video of the agent and the customer. The app provides a web-based solution that allows the client to complete a dull KYC process from anywhere then makes it more time-saving as well as convenient.
And the third winner, Wallet.ng—a start-up that provides an alternative bank for digital natives growing generation. The strong point of the platform is that it allows native to customers’ devices as Facebook and WhatsApp
Ecobank Group CEO, Ade Ayeyemi stated that they were so proud of the finalists. These finalists were great examples of entrepreneurial spirit and creativity that will drive their continent’s global competitiveness in the commercial services markets. They were excited to work together with the 11 finalists for the next year to deliver innovative banking services that are affordable and improve Africans’ lives.
There were over 412 innovative fintech entrepreneurs applications contested in Fintech Challenge this year. They were all from Asia, Africa, Europe, and North America. The 11 finalists are joining the Ecobank Fintech Fellowship, a one-year business program. In the program, they will explore many opportunities for commercial partnerships with the Ecobank Group, to launch and scale products to 33 countries of Ecobank’s markets in the continent.
On the second year of the Ecobank Fintech Challenge fintech conjoined start-ups and innovators, investors, policy-makers, and development organizations worldwide to network. Together they witnessed and celebrated the induction of the finalists into Ecobank Fintech Fellowship of 2018. Minister of Business Development of Ghana, Dr. Ibrahim Awal Mohammed also witnessed the event and celebration. He supported the event and Ecobank to improve job opportunities in Africa.
The event was designed and managed by advisory firm Konfidants and sponsored by FMO, Microsoft4Afrika, Accion Venture Labs, Cellulant and Finconnecta. Check out the program website www.EcobankFinTech.com to find more information about their innovations and Innovation Fellowship.
