Arise conference explores does growth in banking lead to economic development
Arise hosted its fourth investment conference in Cape Town from 17 – 18 February 2020.The aim of this annual event is to provide a collaborative platform to facilitate knowledge exchange and information sharing amongst Arise’s partner banks and key industry role-players in the global and local financial services sector.
Themed “Does growth in banking lead to economic development?” the conference was characterised by phenomenal industry speakers, who provided insight into the correlation between banking development and economic growth on the continent. Keynote speakers on the first day included Chris Newson, former CEO of Standard Bank Africa, who provided insight into the challenges that the banking industry in Africa faces. Topics that were explored included if banks have the right lending and policies, credit processes and skills in place to advance economic development.
Another critical issue that came under the spotlight was the advent of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and automation and its impact on job creation. Brett St Claire, CEO of Terraflow AI session covered how banks can balance the double-edged sword of technology and job creation in an African context. On the cards was also Samira Mensah, Lead Analyst Africa from S&P Global who looked at the rise in national debt on African economies including the exposure of banks. Closing off the conference on the first day was Kevin Njiraini, Regional Director, Southern Africa and Nigeria, International Finance Corporation, who critically looked at the role of foreign Development Finance Institutions (DFIs) in promoting the banking sector in Africa.
The second day of the conference provided a platform for our investee partner banks like Ecobank (Togo), Equity Bank (Kenya), dfcu Bank (Uganda), NMBZ (Zimbabwe) and NMB (Tanzania) to share how they are advancing economic growth on the African continent. A highlight on the second day was the panel discussion on banking in turbulent times and how NMBZ Bank has managed to remain relevant in a Zimbabwean context. Concluding the second day was Zachariah George, Founder of Startuobootcamp AfriTech, who discussed the importance of investing in SME based technologies and start-ups to spur economic growth and job creation in Africa.
The event was a great success with more than 140 delegates in attendance from across the globe and the African continent.
To view the presentations, click here
To view the conference photo gallery, click here
