Founder and CEO of Interswitch Limited, Mitchel Elegbe and internationally acclaimed rocket scientist, motivational speaker and innovator, Siyabulela Xusa, headlined the event giving participants strategic insights into today’s global digital economy and how to harness it for development of the Nigerian economy.
In her welcome address, Chief Executive Officer, Stanbic IBTC Holdings PLC, Mrs. Sola David-Borha, said a major objective of the event was to help individuals and businesses gain insight on how they can leverage technology to develop their businesses and the Nigerian economy. She described digitization as the way of the future, while the development of a vast entrepreneurship class will be crucial to lifting Africa out of poverty.
Mr. Mitchel Elegbe, the brain behind the world class integrated payment and transaction processing company, cited the example of Interswitch to exemplify the transformational power of digital technology. He reiterated that there are huge opportunities for African companies in the digital and innovation space, and only requires the ability to recognize such opportunities for growth and development.
He provided a scorecard on the journey to a cashless economy using Interswitch which he has nurtured into a leading brand in Nigeria’s e-Commerce landscape, to further explain the power of digital technology.
Chief Executive, Stanbic IBTC Bank, Yinka Sanni, in thanking the speakers and participants, restated that as an African institution, the Standard Bank Group, to which Stanbic IBTC belongs, will continue to unravel opportunities in Nigeria and Africa by facilitating exchange of ideas and information to help highlight investment opportunities.
Participants from both the public and private sectors, including experts, investors, regulators, captains of industry and the business community attended the event.
Standard Bank Group, Africa’s largest banking group by assets and market capitalization, has been in operation for 153 years and has direct, on-the-ground representation in 20 African countries. Stanbic IBTC Holdings Plc. is a full service financial services group with a clear focus on three main business pillars – Corporate and Investment Banking, Personal and Business Banking and Wealth Management.