Godwin Emefiele
Governor
Central Bank of Nigeria
Around the world, some 1.7 billion adults have never had a bank account. But 1.1 billion of them have a mobile phone.
Innovation to expand digital financial inclusion in developing countries will be in focus at the 2021 symposium of the Financial Inclusion Global Initiative (FIGI), taking place online from 18 May to 24 June.
The Financial Inclusion Global Initiative (FIGI) supports national policy reforms to stimulate financial inclusion and leads research to build trust in digital financial services.
Symposium topics include financial technology (fintech) for inclusion, gender equity, consumer protection, cybersecurity and trust, digital identity, payment acceptance, and experiences reaching underserved and vulnerable populations during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Participants will also share insights on the achievements and ambitions of the FIGI community, and the symposium would welcome your views on financial inclusion priorities beyond 2021.
The conference is a meeting of the information and communication technology (ICT) and financial services sectors to identify and review the latest innovations in digital financial services and related policy and regulatory reform, sharing knowledge and expertise to expand financial inclusion.
Policymakers, ICT regulators, central banks, mobile network operators, digital financial service providers, payment system organizations, standards bodies, international organizations, and the fintech community are the focus of the event.
The opening ceremony will feature a pre-recorded keynote address from H.M. Queen Máxima of the Netherlands, United Nations Secretary-General’s Special Advocate for Inclusive Finance for Development (UNSGSA).
Confirmed speakers include:
Mahesh Uttamchandani, Global Manager Financial Inclusion & Infrastructure, Finance, Competitiveness, and Innovation Global Practice, World Bank Group
Magda Bianco, Managing Director, Bank of Italy
Gregory Chen, Policy Lead, Consultative Group to Assist the Poor
Emran Islam, Senior Financial Sector Expert, Monetary and Capital Markets, International Monetary Fund
Tan Yeow Seng, Executive Director, Monetary Authority of Singapore
May Abulnaga, First Sub-Governor, Technical Office of the Governor, Central Bank of Egypt
Kendrick Lee, Director, National Digital Identity, Government Technology Agency of Singapore
Jonathan Hakim, CEO, Cignifi
Kevin Butler, Associate Professor, University of Florida
Hisham El-Bihbety, Chief Information Security Officer, Bank of Canada
Abbie Barbir, Senior Security Advisor, CVS Health
Rory Macmillan, Partner, Macmillan Keck Attorneys & Solicitors
Alexandra Rizzi, Senior Research Director, Accion
Debora Comparin, Chair, Open Standards Identity APIs Initiative
Simeon Coney, Chief Strategy Officer, Adaptive Mobile Security
Eve Araduha, Senior Manager IT Client Relations & Delivery, MTN
Jami Solli, Commercial Litigation Lawyer, Global Alliance for Legal Aid
FIGI is an open framework for collaboration led by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), the World Bank Group, and the Committee on Payments and Market Infrastructures (CPMI), with support from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
An operational work stream supports policy innovation in China, Egypt and Mexico, providing valuable case studies for other countries around the world.
A knowledge work stream, enacted by three working groups, advances research in key areas of digital finance:
The relationship between digital identity and financial inclusion;
Electronic payment acceptance by merchants and their customers;
Security and trust in digital financial services.
