By Yusufu S. Bangura
Interswitch digital company has on Wednesday,November 30,held its maiden breakfast meeting in Sierra Leone and it has expanded its operations in the country in order to boost technology and financial services ecosystem in the country.
The meeting took place at the Sierra Palms Hotel, Aberdeen in Freetown.
The meeting tagged “Accelerating Growth and Profitability – Leveraging Technology to Win,” provided key insights and explored robust opportunities for businesses in Sierra Leone to continue to evolve.
Speaking at the session, Head of Sales, Payment Processing and Switching at Interswitch, Olubunmi Aina, said Interswitch is an Africa’s leading integrated payments and digital commerce company which further deepened its expansion beyond the shores of Nigeria with organization of its first breakfast session in Sierra Leone.
He said that businesses in Sierra Leone were set to enjoy seamless business operations, especially as pertaining to payments.
He further said the launching of the company is as a result of the technology giant’s focus on boosting the continent’s digital payments ecosystem through engagements with key stakeholders and partners.
He said their core objective is to deliver an Africa where payments are a seamless and invisible part of everyday life, and that they have carried this vision with them for the past 20 years, adding that they are committed to the advancement and penetration of digital payments in Africa as a whole.
He maintained that during the meeting, topical industry issues were discussed, and attendees were introduced to a variety of innovative products and solutions targeted at commercial banks, microfinance banks, fintechs, other financial institutions, and the general public.
“We will continue to create innovative solutions that enable individuals and communities to prosper across the continent. Today, we are in the Sierra Leone market to provide customers and businesses with secure and convenient digital payments products and to enhance customer experience,” Aina said.
Aina said during the event, participants were on-boarded onto the company’s products which includes postilion retail payment, Interswitch banking as a service, payment as a service, agency banking and card fusion.
Manager, Sales and Account Management at Interswitch, Robinta Aluyi said the company established 20 years ago and has been consistently providing cutting edge solutions and leveraging technology in order to have in-depth understanding of the revenue drivers and securing trusted partnership.
She added that they were bringing a platform in the country that allows businesses thrive so that customers and partners can create their own offerings.
She said for Sierra Leone they were looking around revolutionizing and automating the payment landscape, particularly around commercial banks, interacting and micro-finance.
She further said they will be offering solutions around front-time processing and enable card processing, open banking transactions, other payment types, shared infrastructure, and providing hardware and software solutions.
“In terms of the relationship between our and the local banks in Sierra Leone, we have 100% of the banks in terms of coverages and we have some of these banks in Sierra Leone where their affiliates branches are,” she said.
She continued that these products and solutions will allow customers such as financial institutions, banks, fintechs and microfinance banks to offer topnotch digital payment solutions to their customers.
Also, with these products, businesses will enjoy enhancement opportunities and better customer experiences.
“It is no longer news that the deepened penetration of digital payments is helping to boost Africa’s economy. We are not resting on our oars but will continue to provide solutions to further elevate Africa’s payments landscape as a whole,” Aina said.
Chief Information Officer at Guaranty Trust Bank, Mory Konate said that Interswitch has been a leading partner of GTB, adding that the relationship had been in existence for a long time now.
“They have helped us on the drive for digital payment and card businesses in Sierra Leone,” he said.
He added that Interswitch has the same vision with GT Bank to making sure that payment is easy for all class of society. “We are aiming to continue the partnership with them,” he said.
The event ended on a high note as select customers were rewarded for their unwavering support for the company.
