Listen Now

This week, Andrew sits down with the Co-Founder & CEO of South Africa's FiveWest, Omer Iqbal. Omer discusses the use cases for cryptocurrency in Africa and how businesses and individuals alike can benefit from using cryptocurrency. Combatting inflation risk and speeding up international transfers are just a few of the many ways FiveWest leverages cryptocurrency. Beyond discussing FiveWest and cryptocurrency use cases, Omer comments on FTX's downfall and shares some valuable advice for young people looking to build a career in financial technology.

This week, Andrew sits down with Nael and Israel, the Co-Founders of Ethiopia's Chapa to discuss their mission to build the 'Stripe of East Africa.' Chapa was a participant in the Africa Fintech Summit's 5th AlphaExpo Micro-Accelerator Cohort and the winner of the AlphaExpo Pitch Competition hosted at AFTSCapeTown on November 4, 2022. Through this discussion, Nael and Israel highlight Chapa's business model and evolution since its founding and sheds some much needed light on the nuances and needs of Ethiopia's nascent financial technology ecosystem.

This week Andrew sits down with Djiba Diallo, the Senior Fintech Advisor at Ecobank. Andrew and Djiba discuss the importance of banking-fintech collaboration, how technology is being leveraged by banks across Africa, and the upcoming Ecobank Fintech Challenge.

This week, Andrew sits down with Yves Eonnet, Co-Founder & Chairman of Skaleet, an international fintech that has developed a Next-Generation Core Banking System. Yves has over 25 years' experience in banking innovation and technology and has also published a book "Fintech: The Banks Strike Back", where he highlights his vision on the digital banking ecosystem in the future.

In this episode, Andrew sits down with Olukayode Ariyo, the Managing Director & CEO of Accelerex, a Financial Times 2022 Africa's Fastest Growing Companies awardee. Kayode is a renowned Nigerian entrepreneur with 25+ years of experience working at the crossroads of financial inclusion and payments innovation. Kayode and Andrew discuss everything for fintech licensing, to building relationships with regulators, the evolution of Accelerex, and MUCH MORE!

This week, Andrew sits down with Akinyinka Akintunde, the Chief Operating Officer of AFEX. The conversation dives into AFEX's journey to being listed on the Financial Times' 2022 Africa Fastest Growing Companies list, to the company's expansion into Kenya, and the mission driving the connection between smallholder farmers and the information & commodity networks necessary to maximize production and establish food security on the continent.

This week, Andrew sits down with Erik Rind, the Founder & CEO of ImagineBC. ImagineBC is a 'revolutionary new media company' aimed at giving users control over their personal data by enabling them to profit off of advertisements that they watch. Andrew and Erik's conversation covers everything from blockchain to new-age media and even dives into the hardships of being an entrepreneur.

This week Andrew sits down with Karima El Hakim, the newly minted Egypt Country Director for Plug & Play. Karima's career has revolved around ecosystem building and startup acceleration/incubation with her previous work at Fawry and Falak Startups. In this conversation, Andrew and Karima discuss Egypt's vibrant startup ecosystem - diving into the ideas driving smart city initiatives, fintech, e-commerce, digital banking, this year's COP27, and much more!

This week Andrew sits down with Adekunle Daniel, an innovative cryptocurrency entrepreneur from Nigeria looking to solve a variety of use cases holding back crypto's widespread acceptance across Africa. Adekunle is the Founder & CEO of e-Fiat App, a unique cryptocurrency application with the dedicated mission of protecting 'your money against devaluation' and democratizing access for businesses and consumers alike to the global crypto ecosystem.

This week, Andrew sits down to speak with Ayman Essawy, the Co-Founder and General Manager at Lucky App. Lucky operates a consumer-facing credit and discounts network for partner merchants in Egypt and Morocco. Ayman shares some of his thoughts on the North African fintech ecosystem, lessons learned in transitioning from a B2B to B2C focused fintech, and Lucky's plans for increasing market penetration and expansion.

This week, Andrew sits down with Omosalewa "O" Adeyemi, the Global Partnerships & Expansions Head at Flutterwave, to discuss Flutterwave's expansion plans and learn more about one of Africa's fintech unicorns. (This podcast was recorded in November 2021)

This week, Andrew sits down with Michael Spencer, the Co-Founder and CEO of SmartMoney. Andrew and Michael's conversation revolves around driving financial inclusion, customer acquisition, and the importance of rural-focused fintech applications.

This week, Andrew Barden, the Director of Insights at Dedalus Global and Lead Organizer of the Africa Fintech Summit, sits down with Andy Jury, the CEO of the Mukuru Group, to discuss everything from Mukuru's successes in addressing financial inclusion to the company's plans for pan-African mastery.

Leland Rice, Founder & CEO of Dedalus Global, and Zekarias Amsalu, Founder & CEO of Ibex Frontier, discuss the details behind this year's Africa Fintech Summit in Cairo, Egypt on November 16-17, 2021. This conversation dives into what attendees can expect at the conference, why the AFTS Advisory Board chose Cairo as this year's host city, and the news driving the content and ideas that will be discussed at the summit. Tickets are now available on the Africa Fintech Summit website at: https://africafintechsummit.com/

Today on the pod we announce the host city for the November 2019 Africa Fintech Summit (AFTS). Hint: it's the capital of Africa's fastest growing economy and second largest country. We chat with the 2019 AFTS Co-Organizer Zekarias Amsalu—who runs IBEX Frontier, an investment consultancy & route-to-Ethiopian-market advisory—about the host city selection and why it's currently one of the world's most intriguing investment destinations.

Mobile money now accounts for more than 866 million registered users and $1.3 billion transacted every day, according to GSMA's 2018 "State of the Industry Report on Mobile Money," the definitive look at this rapidly growing industry that is transforming financial inclusion in Africa and globally. Join us as we talk with Francesco Pasti, lead author of this year's report, about the ground-breaking shift towards a "payments as a platform approach," the impact of changing regulations and market dynamics, and why Nigeria, Ethiopia, and Egypt are the continent's "sleeping giants."

Saqib Nazir is the Managing Director for Africa of Emergent Technology, the CEO of Interpay Africa, and a veteran fintech entrepreneur in Ghana. When Ghana-based Interpay merged with California-based Emergent Technology this past December, Saqib became the tip of the spear for an "Africa 20-20-20 strategy.” Hear from Saqib about their ambitious plans to enter 20 countries by 2020 and what that means for Africa’s digital payments universe.

This week Flutterwave was named number two on Fast Company's list of the 10 most innovative companies in Africa for 2019. And with good reason. When Olugbenga (aka GB) co-founded the company in 2016, he set out to build a digital payments infrastructure for Africa. Less than three years later Flutterwave has processed over $2.6b in payments, is hailed as one of the best technology platforms anywhere, and has transformed the way businesses make and receive payments on the continent. Leland recently caught up with GB along with Flutterwave's Head of Global Partnerships and Expansion, Omosalewa Adeyemi, on the sidelines of Harvard Business School's Africa Business Conference. (PS - You can also hear from GB and meet Omosalewa live and in person at the Africa Fintech Summit on April 11!)

Atlas Money is a peer-to-peer community banking platform with over 600 agents in Ghana and Senegal and growing. Access Network is a decentralized system that gives the people control of their own token economy. Hear from José Fernández--President of Atlas and Access, blockchain for social impact promoter, economist, and 4x entrepreneur--about how these platforms are interfacing to create a new economic model for Africa's unbanked population.

Perhaps more than anyone, Iyin Aboyeji has put Africa fintech on the map. At the age of 23 he co-founded Andela, which gained attention when it received $24 million in funding from Mark Zuckerberg, and more recently co-founded Flutterwave, an API that has transformed the way pan-African merchants execute payments on a global scale. On October 16, Flutterwave announced an extension of its Series A bringing its total funding beyond the $20m target. On the same day, Iyin stepped down as CEO, following a pattern of exiting once his companies as soon as they are funded and scaling. We catch up with him in DC, hours before the big announcement. If you're curious about what's next for Iyin, you can hear from the man himself at the Africa Fintech Summit on Nov 8th in Lagos, Nigeria. Enjoy.