The African fintech space is different to more developed markets in that startups in the sector are building a whole new infrastructure as opposed to tweaking an existing system. “Traditional structures have left the African population severely untapped when it comes to financial services.”This is a view shared by Gerhard Oosthuizen, chief information officer (CIO) of another South African fintech company Entersekt. As such, there are a lot of innovative services coming out with financial services offerings,” he said. Oosthuizen said there was a need for a better support network for African fintech startups, though there are a number of incubators and partners around. Support is increasingly being offered by traditional banks, more and more of which are open to working with and collaborating to fintech startups.

Source: The North Africa Journal August 17, 2017 06:00 UTC