The FinTech industry in Ghana continues to soar beyond imagination in terms of the rate of attraction of both domestic and foreign direct investment that characterizes its operations Ghana, in recent years, has seen a trend of fast-growing fintech companies inside and outside of the country.
Over 70 fintech companies are estimated to be operating in Ghana and are making huge strides in the industry. Fintech is short for Financial Technology. It refers to the use of technology to improve and automate traditional financial services and processes.
Some of these services include online banking, mobile payments, peer-to-peer lending, digital wallets and financial management tools. Interestingly, Fintech companies in Ghana go through a series of rigorous checks by the Bank of Ghana (the regulator) before they are granted licenses
operates.
Fintechs in Ghana are here to stay as they make payments and financial transactions easier and more convenient for Ghanaians. However, the fintechs that will lead are those that can put more financial solutions and services in their applications at the disposal of their customers, as well as predict
solutions to customer requests and needs.
One of the challenges to the adoption of Fintech in Ghana is the lack of digital literacy among the population. Many people in Ghana, especially those living in rural areas, may not be familiar with the use of digital technologies and may not have the necessary skills to use Fintech solutions.
Challenges in the FINTECH industry include:
Data Security:
There were 1,862 data breaches with an average cost of $4.24 million in 2021. This is an all-time high, leading to even greater concerns about cybersecurity in the banking sector. Companies must be aware that they risk losing not only their reputation but also their money. To prevent a potential breach, you have
to create a FinTech application that includes these features: Two-Factor Authentication and Biometric Authentication.
Regulatory compliance:
One of the challenges in FinTech is the fact that this high-risk industry is governed by government regulations. Companies must comply with a number of laws including GDPR, GLBA, Wiretapping Act, Anti-Money Laundering Act and many others.
Lack of know-how:
Many banks and financial firms use outdated software or struggle to innovate in mobile banking. This is a major issue because their apps are not user-friendly and intuitive. While we may currently be witnessing a constant shift in focus towards providing a better user experience, the process is still a long one.
NFC support:
You can use Fintech app development services to get a team of top-level experts working on your project. This will allow you to implement any feature to compete with the top players in the market.
User retention and user experience:
Maintaining user engagement is one of Fintech’s most common challenges. Low retention means fewer users, resulting in reduced revenue. You can track the approaches used by your competitors to see how they affect the user experience.
Seeing different practice methods will help you choose the best options for your startup.
Recognizing the challenges facing the industry, the Vice President, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, said the government intends to establish a FinTech Innovation Fund to support start-ups to drive Ghana’s digital revolution.
He made this known during the maiden 3i Africa Summit held in Accra from 13 to 15 May 2024, themed “Unlocking FinTech and Africa’s Digital Economic Potential”.
Vice President Bawumia, who had championed the government’s national digitization agenda for the past seven years, said the path to Ghana’s digital revolution was through fintech. Hence, it was imperative that they be financially supported in order to thrive.
He therefore encouraged all stakeholders in the fintech and digital industry to join forces to improve the legislative and regulatory environment in order to strengthen the payments ecosystem and put Ghana on the path to sustainable financial inclusion.
The power of technology, Dr. Bawumia noted, will improve productivity and connectivity to empower individuals through fintech startups, as well as small and medium enterprises, to increase innovation and efficiency in institutional operations.
Over the past seven years, the government has focused on pursuing a digital transformation agenda as part of its economic strategy at an individual and institutional level.
“The aim is to ensure digital empowerment for a prosperous future in this accelerating digital age where the use of modern and emerging technologies has become commonplace and a catalyst for growth, progress and prosperity,” said Dr Bawumia.
Top 10 Fintech Companies in Ghana and What Makes Each Unique:
MTN Mobile Money (known as MTN Momo) is an offshoot of MTN, one of Ghana’s largest telecommunications networks and one of Ghana’s leading fintech platforms, providing consumers and businesses with a bouquet of digital financial services.
Zeepay: trendsetter:
Zeepay, one of Ghana’s fastest growing fintech companies, specializes in mobile money interoperability and international remittances.
Hubtel Hubtel remains one of Ghana’s most agile fintech companies. It provides mobile payment, bulk SMS and e-commerce solutions. Their POS platform allows businesses to accept mobile money, cards and QR codes.
Expresspay is one of Ghana’s prominent fintech companies providing electronic payment solutions.
Kowri, one of Ghana’s fastest growing all-inclusive digital financial applications, is a service from Sevn Ghana Limited (formerly DreamOval Limited).
Finance Plus: Finance Plus is a fintech app from Cube Robotics, one of the licensed fintech companies in Ghana.
Ghanapay is a payment application launched by Ghana Interbank Payment Settlement Systems Limited (GhIPSS).
Chango-Chango is a crowdfunding platform created by IT Consortium (ITC), one of Ghana’s largest B2B fintech companies.
Slydepay: Slydepay was created by Dreamoval Limited and is powered by Stanbic Bank Ghana.
Payswitch is one of the few fintech companies that enables businesses to accept payments through multiple channels, including mobile money, cards (Visa and Mastercard) and other online platforms.
According to the Governor of the Bank of Ghana, Dr. Ernest Addison, harnessing the power of technology, sharing the African fintech narrative and creating an environment for fintechs will make them successful.
To unleash Africa’s fintech and digital economic potential, Dr. Ernest Addison, Governor of the Bank of Ghana, highlighted the need for fintechs to have the ability to navigate regulatory requirements and meet compliance standards.
Dr Addison also said there is a need to address the information gap between investors and fintech startups to boost the payments ecosystem.
He pointed to high mobile phone penetration coupled with a pool of local tech talent, which has led to various Fintech solutions that have widened access to financial services for the unbanked and underserved on the continent.
“A game-changing product central to most digital payment innovations in African countries, mobile money enables e-commerce and serves as an affordable solution for merchant acceptance of digital payments.”