Egypt is hosting the first Financial Technology Conference on Tuesday under the title ‘Seamless North Africa' to bolster the digital economy in Egypt, the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) said in a statement on Friday. The two-day conference is being organised by the CBE, the Council of Arab Economic Unity, the League of Arab States, and the Arab Federation of e-Commerce. The conference, which will be held under the auspices of President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, will be attended by CBE governor Tarek Amer as well as a number of ministers, banking sector leaders, top state officials, and 500 local and international experts and representatives of companies in the field of financial technology. The conference aims at establishing an integrated financial technology economic system by allowing global companies in the field to launch their latest innovations in the Egyptian market. The conference, which will mainly focus on financial technology (FinTech), payment, and e-commerce, will hold a competition on the sidelines involving local and international startups to promote innovative ideas that could revolutionise the Egyptian FinTech industry. Winners of the competition will receive a cash prize of more than 250,000 pounds as well as a free invitation to the next ‘Seamless' conference in Dubai. "Hosting this conference in Egypt delivers an important and direct message about the unique opportunities available for this growing industry in the promising Egyptian market. The FinTech conference represents the starting point towards growing usage of Fintech applications in Egypt led by the Central Bank of Egypt," Amer said in the statement. "Seamless North Africa is about delivering modern, technology driven financial services in one of the world's most promising economies," the website reads. Source: Ahram online
