Ecobank Group, a pan-African banking group, has officially confirmed the commencement of the fifth edition of the Ecobank Fintech Challenge and is encouraging African entrepreneurs in the fintech industry to participate.
The Ecobank Fintech Challenge was designed with the assistance of an international advisory business called Konfidants, and it has partners all around Africa and the world at large. Since its debut in 2017, the Ecobank Fintech Fellowship programme has admitted 46 Fellows.
The goal is to help develop these pioneers who have made methods that can be used by other people and are willing to get help and take advantage of opportunities that will help them grow in the future.
Benefits for startups participating in the Fintech Challenge
The Fintech Challenge is open to fintech firms and developers from any African country, as well as globally focused fintechs with an emphasis on Africa. The application will be due on September 16, 2022.
According to the group, the best fintech selected and aligned with the bank’s strategic goals will be able to earn a total cash award of $50,000 and collaborate and expand their solutions across Ecobank’s 33 African regions.
Dr Tomisin Fashina, operations and technology executive at Ecobank, said, “The uniqueness of the challenge is that it welcomes both early-stage and mature start-up fintechs alike and seeks to align them with different kinds of partnership opportunities within Ecobank that match their differing levels of maturity.”
Ten finalists will be chosen to join at the Ecobank fintech fellowship finals and awards event in October 2022. Additionally, all fellows will be eligible to benefit from the following opportunities with the Bank and its partners.
Multinational products roll out: An opportunity to pursue integration with Ecobank and potentially launch products in all or part of Ecobank’s pan-African 30-country ecosystem.
Service provider partnerships: Ecobank may select some fintechs as pan-African service partners within the bank’s ecosystem.
Access to Ecobank’s Pan-African Banking Sandbox: Fellows will have access to Ecobank’s APIs to test and improve their products for the pan-African market.
Access to Ecobank’s Partner Networks: Founders will be inducted as Ecobank Fintech associates, granting them access and relationships to a vast network of global and African accelerators, potential investors, and mentors.
Integration With Existing Ecobank Digital Offerings: The challenge potentially offers opportunities for Fintechs to integrate with Ecobank’s existing digital offerings. The existing digital offerings include Ecobank Omni, Ecobank electronic financial supply chain(eFSC), Ecobank Xpress, Ecobank Mobile APP or USSD, MasterPassTM QR, mVISATM & mCash, etc. You can learn more about these platforms here. We would like applicants to pitch us how their solutions can add value to these existing Ecobank digital offerings.
Ecobank believes that continuous support and collaboration with forward-thinking fintechs and start-ups is the best way for pan-African banks like Ecobank to change financial services in Africa. Ade Ayeyemi, CEO of Ecobank Group, stated, “We encourage and welcome Africa’s greatest Fintechs to collaborate with us via the 2022 Challenge.”
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About the Challenge
The Ecobank Fintech Challenge identifies and partners with fintechs ready to scale and provides them with support and access to opportunities in Ecobank’s 33 African markets. The goal is to help them become successful Pan-African Fintech companies.
All African Fintech companies are eligible to participate in the challenge. If a fintech wants to apply, they can do so by giving a demo and some information about their product. The products must address one or more of a specific set of points listed out.
The chosen finalists will be able to participate in the Ecobank Fintech Challenge Grand Finale. The grand prize for the winner of the 2022 fintech challenge will be $50,000 in cash. All finalists will be accepted into the Ecobank Fintech Fellowship, which will allow them to look at business opportunities, integration, and partnerships with the Ecobank Group.
