It was a rare honor to speak on the main stage at the 3i Africa Summit. The platform has been graced by countless distinguished individuals, and I am humbled to be among them.
I joined Abena Amoah (Ghana Stock Exchange), Adrian Pillay (Provenir), Evelyn Chilomo Kaingu (Lupiya), and Gertrude Kasei Kunde Kwallinjam MBA/CRB (Development Bank Ghana) to discuss the topic: “Beyond the Score: Building a Data-Powered Credit Market for SMEs.”
This topic is particularly significant to me because I believe that the financial infrastructure in many parts of Africa is not designed for a modern digital financial system. The highly fragmented public and private digital infrastructures hinder the goals we aim to achieve with our investments.
These are some of the challenges that StacAi is trying to solve with it's Financial Trust Infrastructure.
Africa faces unique challenges in financial services. We have one of the highest cost-to-asset ratios globally, indicating inefficiency in asset allocation due to either deteriorating assets or high operating costs. It is typical to pass on these inefficiencies to the end consumer -making access to credit both expensive and less accessible.
Meanwhile, SMEs are the backbone of economic activities in Africa, contributing up to 90% of GDP in many countries. However, systemic challenges prevent them from accessing credit markets. The issue is not merely about access to capital but about ensuring that lenders can allocate the right amount of credit under the right terms to the right small businesses.
While we admire the success in the East, such as India’s strong state investments in digital financial systems, our societies often resist state-led initiatives. India’s Aadhaar system, which provides a unique identification number to over a billion residents, has significantly improved financial inclusion by enabling easier KYC processes and access to banking services. Conversely, Western financial systems, which took centuries to develop, cannot be a feasible model for us due to the urgency of our needs.
By better understanding the full spectrum of small businesses through their digital footprints, we can improve access to finance. Without this investment, we will only address the market's periphery and overlook many crucial players.
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