Interswitch Group, a top player in Africa’s payments and digital commerce sector, has emphasised the need for local currency payment solutions to promote inclusive growth and ease cross-border trade throughout Africa.
The managing director of Payment Processing and Switching at Interswitch Purepay, Akeem Lawal, who made the call at the Nigerian Fintech Week, in Lagos, highlighted the critical role of robust infrastructure for seamless intra-African transactions.
In his keynote, titled “Leveraging Commerce to Accelerate Inclusive Growth – The Role of African Fintech Innovation,” Lawal discussed how current payment systems’ reliance on non-African intermediaries complicates intra-continental trade.
He advocated for solutions that facilitate local currency transactions, reducing dependency on foreign currencies and intermediaries. According to him, fostering an ecosystem of developers, liquidity providers, and financial institutions will be crucial to advancing Africa’s cross-border commerce.
“Interswitch is dedicated to creating solutions that empower African businesses and drive the continent forward. Collaborations among financial institutions are essential to address African businesses’ needs and enable seamless cross-border trade,” Lawal remarked.
Interswitch’s chief customer experience officer, Oremeyi Akah, underscored the company’s commitment to regulatory compliance in AI product development. Akah called for the integration of African perspectives into AI and emphasised the importance of fintech-regulator collaboration to ensure data protection and privacy for users.
Interswitch’s head of Banking Technologies Chijioke Eze, highlighted the growing threat of fraud due to the digital payment surge. Eze urged businesses to be proactive, investing in advanced fraud prevention measures to safeguard their customers.
