Finserve Africa pushes for a level financial playing field

As the rise of digital innovation continues to disrespect the status quo and disrupt the legacy systems to break the boundaries of space, Finserve which recently partnered with CIO East Africa to host the Eastern Africa’s CIO Symposium and Awards has proven to be all out to hasten the momentum of financial inclusion beyond Eastern Africa – its current footprint.

According to Patrice Kiiru, Director Finserve Africa, spinning faster transactions to a critical mass through deployment of digital innovation has necessitated the steady rise and reign of mobile money; bringing the likes of telcos and startups into the same playing field with established financial institutions.

“Today, your competitor is whoever you think it to be, locally and globally; they can be in Mumbai, New York or even Uganda,” said Kiiru adding that at the same time digital innovations is continuing to break the physical boundaries of various demographics and hence increasing the population of potential customers, cutting across borders and even class.

As the force behind the digitization of Equity Group driving 97 percent of transactions to outside their branches, we have recognized the disruption caused by digital innovation and have embraced it. We are able to give our customers convenience, our businesses scale and everyone, accessibility asserted Kiiru.

Asked what exactly, digital innovation has looked like for Finserve, Kiiru made reference to Equitel: the Quity Group’s MVNO, has redefined financial inclusivity in the mobile money space, forcing other telcos to join in its focused vision of shared prosperity for all.

Among the initiatives it Finserve has rolled-out include Jenga Payment Gateway and APIs. “E-commerce has offered us an opportunity like never before to reach the widest collection of payment options through one integration,” said Kiiru noting that Finserve is able to scale businesses in size, location and further provide regulatory and financial services with its APIs to allow one to automate and operate business in other countries.

Of interest at Finserve has also been the recent launch of mKey: Africa’s first keyboard app offering ultimate convenience, allowing one to perform transactions without switching between apps.

“With these innovations, we have learnt to be agile since technology is constantly evolving. Sometimes, it makes us uncomfortable but that is when we know we are getting it right,” said Kiiru opining that ongoing competition is good but collaboration is great as he cited that Finserve believes in collective genius and drawing upon the strengths of the companies and businesses it works from a partners and customers perspective.

While it is challenge to work with a lean team, it is Finserve emerges tireless and believe in a horizontal structure that breeds and supports ideas and celebrates team effort. The customers are the first people they think of when they wake up, work late nights, or face the most difficult nuts to crack to power the ambitions of existing and potential customers beyond boundaries through digital innovation.