KAMPALA – Uganda’s Fintech community envisions regulation as a means of serving the interests of consumers and players as well as acting as a pedestal for the industry’s future growth.
Under a theme dubbed ‘Building a Safe and Regulated Eco-system’, this year’s FITSPA Annual Fintech Conference 2021 that will be held on September, 8, 2021 will bring together leading players in business, government, technology and world-class financial services solution providers in order to better navigate shifting landscapes, help businesses embrace and drive the transition to a digital future and unmask the power of technology.
To-date the Association has registered over 163 members who are determined to explore and utilize all the existing opportunities.
The conference is a great opportunity to network and consolidate the knowledge pool in partnership with the best Fintech solution providers.
Speaking ahead of FITSPA’s 3rd Annual Fintech Conference, Mr Kenneth Kwesiga the Chief Operations Officer Mcash said FITSPA is their collective voice in interfacing with stakeholders.
He explained that before regulation or the advent of FITSPA, there was no mechanism for self-regulation by service providers.
“For example, people who were providing payment services to customers, there were a number of grey areas for a provider. The providers were telecoms yet financial services are regulated by the Bank of Uganda,” he said.
Mr Kwesiga added that there was no guidance on what to do with money that gets stranded in customer’s wallets either because of death or other causes.
“The players did not know what to do with that money. So, we welcome regulation and we are on the same page with the regulator on this,” Kwesiga said.
The Conference will provide for the further entrenchment of the industry in the region by leveraging the opportunities that are continually presenting themselves in the form of challenges and gaps in delivery of services to the market.
The strategies and knowledge shared amongst like-minded peers will build confidence and equip techpreneurs onto greater achievements.
Mr Peter Kawumi, the Chairman and Country General Manager FITSPA, explained that the FITSPA Fintech Conference will be a virtual experience delivered via platforms that will allow for participants to engage and network with each other during the conference.
He explained that a regulated fintech ecosystem is better for customers, consumers, the economy, and better for the growth of the fintech space.
According to Kawumi, one of FISTPA key activities is policy advocacy. He shares that the association provides a unified voice for the Uganda fintech ecosystem to engage different stakeholders on policy, regulation and other issues including consumer protection.
“During the drafting of the regulations, FITSPA adopted a watchdog role to ensure that the regulations would be fair to consumers and the fintech community. The FITSPA community is made up of local and global companies that Innovate to improve and upgrade all sectors using technology,” he said.
Kawuma added that the goals for this year’s conference are a review of Industry growth, discussing new regulation and progress of its implementation, explore Partnerships and Investor preparedness, local and regional Industry trends, networking and connecting, showcase indigenous fintech solution
Mr Vincent Tumwijukye, the CEO of Future Link Technologies says the opportunity in Uganda’s fintech is barely tapped and the conference should provide opportunities for collaboration between Ugandan fintech and their foreign counterparts.
“I also hope that we shall be able to find convergence around basic issues such as the protection of end-users of our services, and collaboration on how we can bring down transaction costs without compromising safety,” Tumwijukye says.
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