FEATURE
FINTECH HIVE
A fintech incubation hub for Africa
DIFC’ s FinTech Hive is inviting early stage businesses for three month mentoring programme. By Arun Shankar
competitive process and offering them the opportunity to develop, test, modify innovations in collaboration with DIFC and regional financial institutions.
DIFC is a financial hub for Africa, Middle East, South Asia, and provides a platform connecting the region’ s markets. Fintech startups invited to join the 3 month Fintech Hive programme, would be able to engage with DIFC’ s 1,400 + members. The accelerator programme has also onboarded key partners including Citibank, Emirates NBD, HSBC, Mashreq, Standard Chartered, VISA, Envestnet Yodlee, Facebook for Developers, who would be available as mentors.
( Left to right) Sushil Saluja, Managing Director Financial Services, Europe, Africa, Latin America at Accenture; and Pinaki Aich, Vice President of Group Strategy at Dubai International Financial Centre Authority.
Fintech companies have different origins. They could be startups by technology entrepreneurs or financial services professionals who have a very good understanding of business and want to apply technology to strengthen business practices. Whatever may be their origins they have common and similar goals. And that is to apply technology to solve business problems and to change the way the world uses financial services in retail and corporate activities.
“ The fintechs that I have worked with are all seeking to either change the value chain, change the supply chain, change the business model, change the interaction model or the user experience,” says Sushil Saluja, Managing Director Financial Services, Europe Africa Latin America at Accenture.
One of the reasons why fintech and startup investments are bypassing Africa is that investments follow GDP and GDP is skewed towards developed countries. But Africa is an opportunity for fintech businesses to serve the population as it moves from unbanked into the banking community, for African institutions wishing to integrate with the global economy, for businesses entering Africa for trading, and for foreign investment coming into the country.
The recent partnership announcement between Dubai International Financial Centre and Accenture to launch the region’ s first fintech accelerator programme in Dubai is a step to correct the skewed investment into fintech startups across North Africa and Middle East. The programme intends to bridge the gap by identifying technology entrepreneurs through a
The Fintech Hive programme has received interest from 200 companies based on its problem-solving areas, which have been chosen from Big Data Analytics and Predictive Modelling, Wearables, Robo Advisors, Mobility, NFC, Biometrics, Blockchain, P2P and Crowdfunding, Cyber Security, Social Media and Collaboration, Infrastructure and Operational, Artificial Intelligence.
Startups or businesses in the early phases who have a solution to these problem areas, and who have applied for this accelerator programme would go through a selection process. The purpose of the selection process, is to identify those best suited to benefit the most from the 3-month onsite mentoring programme.
Explains Pinaki Aich, Vice President of Group Strategy at Dubai International Financial Centre Authority, the selected participants can benefit from the programme by saving costly financial license and setup fees, which they
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