Predicting the future role of financial technology, colloquially known as fintech, in the global economy, the former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, said that fintech will become the banks of the century.
His prediction comes on the heels of reports of the current $1.5 billion valuation of a Nigerian tech firm, Andela, which crossed the billion-dollar threshold after a $200 million Series E round led by Softbank Vision Fund 2.
Sanusi said that he envisioned the opportunities available in the adoption of mobile banking while he helmed the affairs of the country’s apex bank.
He noted that technology would serve as a propeller of growth for various sectors.
Speaking on Arise TV, Sanusi posited, “What has happened to the two or three companies we’ve seen, or the Fintech companies we’ve seen, is that they have chosen us the way that we need to move as a country.
“And one of the reasons I pushed for mobile banking for financial technology as governor of central bank is, I was convinced that’s the way to go.
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“That the Fintechs are going to be bigger than the bank, the Fintechs are going to be the new banks of the century.
“Technology is what is going to improve the services or productivity of manufacturing. You are moving into artificial intelligence.
“Even at the lever of individuals, today we’ve got platforms that basically creates a global market for skills. Today, if you are a developer, or programmer, you can sit in Kano or in Kaduna or in Lagos and be working every day for a company in Argentina or in Chile earning foreign exchange.
“And basically, there are people who make those contracts between you and your employees. And you don’t even have to move away from your country. You sit down, earn foreign exchange and pay taxes.
“So the opportunity and potential about technology are huge. And all the government needs to do is to provide the infrastructure and create an enabling environment.
“One of the things we fail in as a country is we fail to recognise technology and power as factors of production.”
