…US$50,000 prize money up for grabs
- Fintech Challenge offers early stage and mature start-ups the potential to partner with Ecobank across 33 African countries
- Applications open until September 16
Pan-African banking group, Ecobank Group, has launched the fifth edition of the Ecobank Fintech Challenge, and encourages African Fintech entrepreneurs to enter the competition.
Fintechs that are aligned with the bank’s strategic objectives stand a chance to win an overall cash prize of US$50,000 for the top winner, and the opportunity to partner and scale their solutions across Ecobank’s 33 African markets.
Fintech companies and developers originating from any of Africa’s 54 countries, as well as global Africa-centred Fintechs, are eligible to enter the Fintech Challenge by visiting: https://Ecobankfintechchallenge.com. Applications can be made until the 16 September 2022. Ten finalists will be inducted into the Ecobank Fintech Fellowship after the finals, and an awards ceremony which will take place in October 2022.
In addition, all Fellows will qualify to explore the following opportunities with the bank and its partners:
- Multinational products roll out: An opportunity to pursue integration with Ecobank, and potentially launch products in all or part of Ecobank’s pan-African 33-country ecosystem.
- Service provider partnerships: Ecobank may select some Fintechs as pan-African service partners within the bank’s ecosystem.
- Access to Ecobank’s Pan-African Banking Sandbox: Fellows will be given access to Ecobank’s APIs to test and improve their products for the pan-African market.
- Priority Access to Ecobank’s Venture Capital partners for funding exploration.
Ade Ayeyemi, Chief Executive Officer, Ecobank Group, said: “Ecobank believes that the only way to transform financial services in Africa is for Pan-African banks like Ecobank to continually support and collaborate with innovative Fintechs and start-ups. We invite and welcome Africa’s best Fintechs to work with us through the 2022 Challenge”.
Dr. Tomisin Fashina, Operations and Technology Executive, Ecobank Group, said: “The uniqueness of the challenge is that it welcomes both early stage and mature start-up Fintechs alike, and seeks to align them with different kinds of partnership opportunities within Ecobank that match their differing levels of maturity”.
The Ecobank Fintech Challenge was designed in partnership with international advisory firm, Konfidants, and is supported by partners across Africa and globally. So far, 46 Fellows have been admitted into the Ecobank Fintech Fellowship programme since it was launched in 2017.
For more information about the competition, its benefits and how to apply, please visit https://Ecobankfintechchallenge.com
Ecobank Transnational Incorporated (‘ETI’ or ‘The Group’)
Ecobank Transnational Incorporated (‘ETI’) is the parent company of the Ecobank Group, the leading independent pan-African banking group. The Ecobank Group employs about 13,000 people and serves over 32 million customers in the consumer, commercial and corporate banking sectors across 33 African countries.
The group has a banking license in France and representative offices in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia; Johannesburg, South Africa; Beijing, China; London, the UK; and Dubai, the United Arab Emirates.
The Group offers a full suite of banking products, services and solutions – including digital – and not limited to bank and deposit accounts, loans, cash management, advisory, trade, securities, wealth and asset management. ETI is listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange in Lagos, the Ghana Stock Exchange in Accra, and the Bourse Régionale des Valeurs Mobilières in Abidjan.
