Mastercard is expanding its Engage programme in Sub-Saharan Africa, with events in Nigeria and Kenya to introduce local fintech innovators to its broad partnership opportunities.
Mastercard Engage, launched to fintech startups in Nairobi and Lagos, is a global partnership and development programme that builds digital payment technology ecosystems and enhances speed to market.
The programme connects financial institutions, merchants and IoT Manufacturers with the right technology partners that can help them deliver innovative payment solutions, for businesses and consumers alike.
Since its launch in February 2017, the platform has tripled the number of fintech partners. The capabilities of these partners include deploying digital wallets, enabling tokenization, facilitating instant payouts and launching mobile point of sale solutions, among others.
“People today are more connected, more technologically savvy and more mobile. As a result, financial institutions, merchants and device manufacturers seek to provide them more innovative ways to pay and be paid across all channels and devices,” said Adam Jones, area business head at Mastercard East Africa.
“Bringing these solutions to life depends on finding the right service provider who can work behind the scenes to integrate the technology. Having more local partners not only supports our vision of innovating locally but brings our customers closer to service providers who better understand their businesses and markets ensuring they can bring the right solutions to their customer more efficiently.”
In addition to being connected with possible customers, Engage technology partners have their qualified solutions listed, ranked and reviewed in Engage directories. They also get access to Engage-specific training through the “Academy for Engage” education and training programme, as well as regional events that provide up to date information on Mastercard’s value propositions, product strategy and market priorities.
“At Mastercard, we believe partnerships – particularly with regional fintechs with a deep understanding of the local environment – are crucial for ongoing innovation that delivers relevant payment solutions to empower communities. Engage connects financial institutions and merchants with technology partners within a broad innovation ecosystem, helping companies create and launch the most innovative payment solutions for businesses and consumers,” said Omokehinde Adebanjo, area business head at Mastercard West Africa.
