Though not without significant obstacles, the African financial industry has expanded significantly in recent years. The pan-African magazine Jeune Afrique organized the Africa Financial Industry Summit (AFIS) in Lomé, Togo, which has grown to be a major gathering place for African finance, bringing together over 800 leaders.
The financial institutions on the continent are starting to become recognized globally, despite increasing challenges. An opportunity to increase the influence of the African banking sector is emerging as outside competitors retreat.
But among the industry’s top priorities are controlling the nation’s mounting debt, adjusting to climate change, and securing new funding sources.
🎬 The Africa Financial Industry Summit kicks off today in Lomé 🇹🇬, #Togo‘s largest city.
Tune in for game-changing
takeaways from the most influential players in #Africa‘s financial sector.
➡️ Follow @IFCAfrica and the hashtag #AFIS2023 for updates from this summit. pic.twitter.com/GmySY8gJk7
— IFC (@IFC_org) November 15, 2023
The West African Development Bank’s Chairman of the Board of Directors, Serge Ékué, emphasizes how vitally important efficient regulation is to the industry’s rapid and long-term expansion.
A prominent topic of debate during the conference was foreign loans, since borrowing on global markets can be 2.1% more expensive in sub-Saharan Africa, placing a heavy strain on local governments.
In order to ameliorate the situation, Uzziel Ndagijimana, the Minister of Finance and Economic Planning for Rwanda, brought up the necessity for rating agencies to consider structural factors more thoroughly.
The MD of Access Holdings @HerbertOWigwe warns #Africa must not be cut out from the global financial system.
Wigwe was speaking at our Africa Financial Industry Summit #AFIS2023 @jeune_afrique pic.twitter.com/sogFdETe4a
— The Africa Report (@TheAfricaReport) November 16, 2023
Tokenization of assets is another important focus of this event. Tokenization is the process of transforming physical items into digital tokens that can be traded online. By making extremely valuable assets available, this strategy may release a significant amount of liquidity.
Lastly, the significance of cyber-insurance is growing. According to Alain Kaninda, Director General of the Regulatory Authority, cyberattacks pose a serious threat to African banks, with an average of 2,164 attacks every week.
With the leaders of African finance coming together to debate the prospects and challenges of a rapidly expanding industry, AFIS has become a significant event in just three years.
