Despite the huge market opportunity for fintech in Africa, the growing number of fintech companies has made the industry more competitive than ever before.
To this end, one of the most successful fintech companies in Africa, Flutterwave has identified customer trust as an essential quality to a successful fintech operation.
Speaking as a panelist at the annual conference of the Committee of e-Business Industry Heads (CeBIH), Flutterwave Head of Risk, Africa, Emmanuel Efenure noted that fintech companies and banks are in the business of trust-building as they build financial solutions that enable payments.
Efenure further noted that banks and fintech companies must do all it takes to build trust and identify fraud before they happen in order to protect their brands. He noted that customer trust has been at the forefront of Flutterwave.
“Fraud is real, and the industry must understand that. The reality is that irrespective of whether you are a bank or a fintech, you are not immune,” he said.
Quoting data from NIBSS, Efenure said that the 238% increase in cyberattacks in the global financial sector in 2020, is a vivid reminder. He also added that N3.5 billion was lost to fraud-related incidents by financial institutions in Nigeria between July and September 2020.
“Fraudsters always look for loopholes to defraud people globally,” he said.
Founded in 2016, Investors King understands that Flutterwave provides a payment infrastructure for global merchants and payment service providers across the African continent. Flutterwave was founded by Olugbenga Agboola and Iyinoluwa Aboyeji.
Other panelists at the event with the theme “The Fintech Ecosystem–Perspective on Fraud,” include Niyi Toluwalope, CEO of eTranzact, represented by the Head of Risk and Information Management, Edward Onyenweaku; and Griffith Ehebha, Executive Vice President, Risk and Information Security at Interswitch Group.
Additionally, the panelists agreed that since the regulators are working adequately to combat fraud, it is imperative for every member of the ecosystem, including consumers, to play their part to eradicate fraud.