Britain Hosts FinTech Conference

By Dipo Olowookere

High Commissioner Jonathan Drew opened a conference on FinTech on Wednesday 25 January, a joint initiative from the British High Commission in Mauritius, the Financial Services Promotion Agency and the Board of Investment.

The conference explored the development of Mauritius as a FinTech hub for the Sub-Saharan Africa region. A panel of experts, led by Nicole Anderson, CEO of FinTech Circle Innovate, shared their insight on how the British FinTech model can be applied in Mauritius to implement innovative solutions in the financial services sector and drive economic growth.

In the presence of Her Excellency Dr Ameenah Gurib Fakim, President of the Republic of Mauritus, High Commissioner Jonathan Drew emphasied the global role that the UK will play after Brexit. He said:

“Last week, my Prime Minister, Theresa May, gave a speech setting out her vision of the future of EU/UK partnership and her plan for Britain. She made clear two key principles – first: that the UK was leaving the EU but that the UK would remain strong partners with the EU; and second that we would not, as some commentators have claimed, be pulling up the drawbridge and becoming a Little Britain but would be a globally facing country. My Prime Minister’s Global Britain plan sets out how the UK and its people will seize the opportunity of leaving the European Union to look outward to the world, doing business more directly with our old friends in the Commonwealth and our other friends and allies: the UK is already a great trading nation and one of firmest advocates for free trade in the world.”

The FinTech Conference was attended by a cross section of key stakeholders such as Government officials, business leaders, regulators and academics.