On the 23rd of September 2022, TechCabal, the leading pan-African publication on innovation and technology, will host the second edition of its flagship conference – “The Future of Commerce”.
The Future of Commerce will explore how trends like social commerce and BNPL which have become consumer favourites are shaping the market, as well as all the other innovative ways in which startups and large organizations are catering to the needs of the informal sector, particularly in areas like payments, mobile money, last-mile delivery, agent networks, and the digitisation of informal trade.
The conference is a hybrid event and as such, all interested attendees are welcome to join online by registering here. There will also be a small physical audience but attendance will be strictly by invitation.
“Africa’s markets are evolving rapidly, pushed by the technology and business model innovation of relentless startups, intent on solving long-standing problems and building world-eating companies. At the same time, global players like Amazon are expanding footprint on the continent, seeking new opportunities in Africa’s fractured markets, and large but underserved populations,” said Tomiwa Aladekomo, CEO of Big Cabal Media.
“TechCabal’s annual Future of Commerce conference aims to make sense of these movements; bringing the biggest and brightest players together to provide actionable insight into the future of commerce on the continent.”
Partnering with TechCabal this year as a headline sponsor is Moniepoint, powered by TeamApt. Speaking on the sponsorship, TeamApt’s CEO, Tosin Eniolorunda said: “At TeamApt, we’re hyper-focused on serving the informal economy, and Moniepoint is the largest payment provider for such businesses in Nigeria, providing them with the financial tools needed to run and grow their operations. As such, we’re delighted to partner with TechCabal on this conference, which is the biggest of its kind on the continent and speaks clearly to what we do.”
This year, the conference has a special focus on the informal economy. Africa’s informal sector is the largest in the world; according to the International Labor Organization, about 90% of the economy in sub-Saharan Africa is informal. The informal sector is also the backbone of economic activity in Africa. As such, the digitisation of this sector plays a pivotal role in the future of urban Africa and is central to the growth of commerce on the continent.
Confirmed speakers at the event include Akshay Grover (group CEO at Cellulant), Nika Naghavi, (director of MNOs at MFS Africa), Jacobo Singer (president at dLocal), Tim Steel (CEO at Copia Global), Tosin Eniolorunda (founder and CEO at TeamApt) and Ismael Belkhayat, founder and CEO at Chari.
These speakers will discuss how trends in payments, social commerce, mobile money, agent networks, last-mile delivery, informal trade, buy-now-pay-later and the digitization of informal trade are influencing commerce now and in the near future. They will also speak about what we can expect to see in the coming decade.
dLocal, a payments technology platform with a focus on emerging markets in LATAM, APAC and EMEA is also coming on board as an associate sponsor. Moses Sule, Head of Growth Africa at dLocal also spoke about the organisation’s commitment, saying: “We’re very excited to sponsor this conference and see it as a vantage point for our entry into and positioning on the continent.”
KasuwaGo, a mobile app platform connecting grain farmers, wholesalers and retailers, is also an associate sponsor for the conference. Dr. Olabisi, the researcher behind the innovation, said, “The aim of KasuwaGo is to bridge connection gaps in the informal sector using modern technology, and we are thrilled to be part of this conference and this vital conversation.” The technology was developed with funding by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) through Feed the Future, the U.S. Government’s global hunger and food security initiative.
The inaugural edition of the conference which was held last year saw over 2,500 people join across different platforms, with speakers including Shola Akinlade (CEO of Paystack), Ray Youssef (CEO of Paxful), Juliet Anammah (Chairwoman at Jumia Nigeria), Nkebet Mesele (Senior Director at Visa Sub-Saharan Africa), and Dami Osunsanya (Director, SoftBank Opportunity Fund).
For sponsorship inquiries, contact the Head of Partnerships at Big Cabal Media, Favour Ogunlana | Favour@bigcabal.com
For general event inquiries, please send an email to tcinsights@bigcabal.com
About TechCabal
Founded in 2013, TechCabal is a future-focused publication that speaks in-depth to African innovation and technology. In addition to well-researched and written articles, reports, events and expert opinions on the main website, we publish the TC Daily newsletter, the most comprehensive roundup of technology around Africa. The TC Daily arrives in inboxes Monday through Friday at 7 am WAT and can also be accessed on the website. For more information, visit www.techcabal.com, and follow www.twitter.com/TechCabal and www.instagram.com/techcabal.
About Moniepoint
Moniepoint by TeamApt is a business banking solution that provides merchants and business owners with the financial tools needed to run and grow their businesses. To date, Moniepoint has processed over 100 million transactions, servicing over 120,000 businesses and 10 million customers. Moniepoint helps businesses get paid easily, by providing a reliable network and affordable rates. Businesses also get quick and easy access to overdraft and business expansion loans. The service also enables businesses to manage their operations in one place, by offering services such as payroll management, tax management, business insurance, integrated accounting management and so on. For more information, visit www.moniepoint.com
About dLocal
Founded in 2016, dLocal’s mission is to enable global merchants to connect seamlessly with billions of emerging market users. dLocal focuses on making the complex simple, redefining the online payments experience in emerging markets. Through the “One dLocal” concept (one API, one platform, one contract), global companies can accept payments, send pay-outs, settle funds globally, and issue white label prepaid virtual and physical debit cards in local currencies, without the need to manage separate pay-in and payout processors, set up numerous local entities, and integrate multiple acquirers and payment methods in each market. We reach billions of consumers in emerging markets by accepting over 700 local payment methods in 35 countries across Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East. For more information, visit www.dlocal.com
About KasuwaGo
KasuwaGo is an application platform that promotes trade integration in regional grain markets using mobile technologies, developed and funded through the Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Legume Systems Research managed by Michigan State University. This virtual marketplace app connects farmers, wholesalers and retailers across grain value chains to promote market integration between the major producing areas and markets in West Africa. For more information, download the application here.
