The Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of eTranzact International Plc., Olaniyi Toluwalope, has called for greater use of technology to close the investment gap existing in the Nigerian capital market.
Toluwalope said this at the 2021 annual workshop of Capital Market Correspondents Association of Nigeria (CAMCAN) with the theme: “Technology as a tool for financial inclusion in Nigeria.
He decried the situation whereby about 70 million Nigerians with active mobile lines are without bank accounts adding that application of technology would help advance the financial inclusion of this category of Nigerians and increase participation.
According to the eTranzact boss, of the Nigeria’s 200 million population ownmobile 110 million own 150 million mobile phone lines while only about 40 million have active bank verification numbers adding that there was need to close the gap, especially as regards small and medium enterprises.
“Financial Inclusion holds the answers to three questions that every capital market leader has which include how do we increase the participation of retail investors? How do we encourage more homegrown businesses leverage the Capital Market for growth? And can the Informal sector participate in the capital markets?” Toluwalope said.
Speaking on: “Technology as a Tool for Financial Inclusion in Nigeria: A Fintech Approach,” he noted that over the past few years, technology had allowed more and more people gain access to financial services which has increased by default, the customer base of capital market.
In his words; “Essentially, the rise of digital financial services means growth for the capital market. In the same vein, by utilising technology to democratise capital market access and participation, we can direct, expand the current digital savings and investment offerings to leverage the capital market for increased returns.
“Today, the average Nigerian can open an account via the APP or by visiting a PocketMoni agent location, send and receive money. We can expand this to include buying shares on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) or bonds on FMDQ and the likes.
“Billions in investments happen outside the capital markets through unlicensed forex trading, crypto trading and even sports betting platforms. This gives insights into the risk appetite of the average Nigerian. We can leverage technology to capture this value while delivering Financial Inclusion,” he said.
On regulator-led Initiatives, he explained that implementation of a three-Tier Know Your Customer (KYC) Structure was created to enable financial institutions expand access to the unbanked, while maintaining controls for risk mitigation adding that licensing of Mobile Money & Agent Banking Operators led to the rise of digital wallets and digital-first financial services delivered through the wallet-based ecosystems, rather than bank account based.
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