It was against this backdrop that Verve International convened key players across the payments value chain for the 2026 edition of Verve Biz Unwind, an ecosystem gathering designed to strengthen partnerships and spark forward-looking conversations about the future of digital payments in Africa.

Held at the prestigious Radisson Blu Anchorage Hotel in Victoria Island, Lagos, the event brought together representatives from the Banks, fintech innovators, merchants, payment processors, and other ecosystem stakeholders.

More than a networking opportunity, Verve Biz Unwind served as a strategic platform for industry leaders to reflect on the evolving payments landscape, share insights, and explore new pathways for collaboration.

A key highlight of the event was the official unveiling of Verve Tokenization, a next-generation security solution designed to enhance transaction integrity and support the continued growth of digital commerce.

Tokenization works by replacing sensitive cardholder data with secure, device-bound digital tokens, rather than transmitting actual card details during transactions.

A unique cryptogram is generated for each payment interaction and this approach significantly reduces the risk of data exposure while maintaining the speed and convenience consumers expect from modern payment experiences.

Beyond its security advantages, Verve Tokenization is designed to enable seamless interoperability across multiple digital environments.

Whether payments occur through mobile wallets, banking applications, e-commerce platforms, or contactless terminals, a single Verve card can operate securely across all these channels.

This capability not only strengthens the customer experience but also creates new opportunities for partners to scale digital payment solutions with confidence.

Trends shaping Africa’s rapidly evolving payments ecosystem were also discussed, which includes the Contactless payments which are fast becoming the mainstream for payments across the continent.

Discussions also highlighted the importance of building infrastructure that not only supports scale, but also strengthens trust across the ecosystem.

In a market where trust is a critical currency, innovations like Tokenization and Contactless payments play an important role in supporting the resilience and reliability of Africa’s expanding payments ecosystem.

Africa’s digital economy is no longer simply an emerging narrative; it is an accelerating reality. Consumer expectations continue to evolve towards faster, safer, and more intuitive payment experiences. Verve continues to work closely with partners across the ecosystem to support this transformation.

The focus goes beyond enabling transactions; it is about building the infrastructure that powers trust, scale, and innovation across Africa’s digital economy.

As the conversations at Verve Biz Unwind 2026 made clear, the future of payments in Africa will not be defined by isolated breakthroughs, but by shared vision and coordinated action across the ecosystem.

By aggressively listing tokenized TradFi assets, maintaining true zero-fee trading on key pairs, and launching its innovative Gold Launchpad for seamless trading access to precious metals, MEXC is positioning itself as the premier gateway for the TradFi-crypto fusion.

Industry reports from Elliptic, the World Economic Forum, and leading analysts continue to project 2026 as the breakthrough year when TradFi and crypto fully merge into a single, unified financial ecosystem.

At the heart of this shift is Real-World Asset (RWA) tokenization; the process of bringing off-chain assets like gold, silver, real estate, bonds, and commodities onto blockchain rails.

Tokenization unlocks liquidity, fractional ownership, and 24/7 global access to assets once reserved for institutions and high-net-worth individuals.

Pension funds, asset managers, and banks are allocating billions, with tokenized RWAs expected to attract massive inflows throughout the year.

Why Africa is at the Center of This Trend

Africa continues to lead global crypto adoption rankings, driven by necessity and innovation. Sub-Saharan Africa has seen explosive growth in crypto transactions, with stablecoins dominating for cross-border remittances, peer-to-peer payments, and inflation hedging. In 2026, the conversation is expanding beyond utility tokens into investment-grade assets.

African traders and investors are increasingly discussing tokenized real-world assets as a gateway to global markets.

Gold and silver, traditional safe-haven stores of value, resonate deeply in regions where currency volatility remains a challenge.

Tokenized versions offer the stability of precious metals combined with the speed and accessibility of crypto.

Regulatory progress in key markets like Nigeria, Kenya, South Africa, and Ghana is also creating fertile ground for institutional-grade products to flourish.

MEXC: The One-Stop Home Positioning Traders for the TradFi Wave

For African users looking to capitalize on this trend, platform choice matters. MEXC has emerged as the go-to destination, combining unmatched asset variety, industry-leading liquidity, and cost efficiency.

• Extensive TradFi-Related Listings: MEXC recently expanded its RWA offering with tokenized gold (XAUT) and silver (XAG) futures, launched with zero-fee trading to maximize capital efficiency. These assets bridge the stability of traditional safe-haven assets with the borderless nature of crypto markets, making them particularly relevant for African traders seeking portfolio diversification.
• True Zero-Fee Trading: MEXC maintains zero maker fees across spot trading and zero fees on hundreds of high-liquidity pairs, including major futures contracts. Recent campaigns like the Commodity Zero-Fee trading pairs have saved users millions in fees while delivering deep order books and minimal slippage. In a year when institutional inflows will drive volatility, cost efficiency is a decisive edge.
• One-Stop Home for All Assets: With thousands of listed tokens spanning DeFi, memecoins, AI projects, stablecoins, and now tokenized RWAs, MEXC lives up to its reputation as the most comprehensive platform in crypto. African traders benefit from seamless onboarding, 24/7 support, and coverage across nearly every country on the continent.

Looking Ahead

2026 has gone beyond choosing between TradFi and crypto. Traders can now enjoy the convergence of TradFi. Tokenized real-world assets are democratizing access to institutional-grade opportunities, and Africa’s vibrant crypto community is uniquely positioned to benefit.

Platforms that remove barriers through zero fees, diverse listings, and relentless focus on liquidity will lead the way. MEXC is already delivering on these fundamentals, providing traders with the tools needed to navigate and capitalize on the evolving financial landscape.

Join the future of finance today. Trade tokenized gold, silver, and the full spectrum of crypto assets on MEXC, where zero fees and unlimited opportunity meet.

MEXC

MEXC Global is a leading digital asset trading platform committed to expanding financial access worldwide. With deep liquidity, a wide range of trading products, and a focus on technological innovation, MEXC empowers users to explore, trade, and grow with confidence across crypto, traditional finance, and beyond.

X ｜ Telegram ｜How to Sign Up on MEXC

Risk Disclaimer:

The information provided in this article regarding cryptocurrencies does not constitute investment advice. Given the highly volatile nature of the cryptocurrency market, investors are encouraged to carefully assess market fluctuations, the fundamentals of projects, and potential financial risks before making any trading decisions.

The event offered a mix of practical sessions, interactive quizzes, and open community discussions.

Building Confidence in Blockchain

For many Nigerians, blockchain often feels distant or overly complex. The Lagos Community Education Day set out to change that.

Through interactive lectures and live demonstrations, attendees were introduced to:

• How blockchains work ‒ from Bitcoin to Ethereum and beyond.

• Wallets and safety ‒ comparing custodial and non-custodial options, and how to secure funds.

• Deposits and withdrawals ‒ with examples relevant to Nigeria, including P2P trading, card payments, and mobile money.

• Hands-on trading tools ‒ live demos of spot, futures, and copy trading.

• Research methods ‒ showing participants how to verify projects before investing.

Opening the Door to Global Stocks and ETFs

A standout discussion centered on how crypto exchanges are expanding beyond cryptocurrencies to include access to stocks and ETFs.

Speakers explained that tokenization now makes it possible for Nigerians to gain exposure to global companies like Tesla or Microsoft, or invest in index funds that track entire markets.

By combining stocks and ETFs with blockchain technology, the barriers to international investing are lowered, allowing young people to see opportunities beyond local markets.

“Education is at the heart of our mission,” said Vugar Usi Zade, COO at Bitget. “By creating spaces like this in Lagos, we give communities practical tools to navigate blockchain from the right sources — from wallets and payments to opportunities in global stocks and ETFs. The turnout shows how eager Nigerians are to bridge traditional finance with Web3 innovation.”

A Day of Learning and Networking

The event wasn’t just about theory. Participants took part in two trivia sessions, polls, and breakout networking. Winners received branded merchandise, collectibles, and other rewards.

By the end of the day, many left with not only new knowledge but also connections to peers equally curious about digital finance.

A Regional Movement

The Lagos edition is part of a wider initiative running across Africa, with previous stops in Nairobi, Johannesburg, and Addis Ababa. The goal is to demystify digital finance for young people and provide them with practical skills that can open doors to new economic opportunities.

Continue the Learning Journey

For those who missed the program, digital resources remain available. Readers can check real time asset data such as the price of Ethereum, follow Bitcoin updates, and explore educational guides on how both crypto and tokenized stock markets function.

Established in 2018, Bitget is the world’s leading cryptocurrency exchange and Web3 company. Serving over 120 million users in 150+ countries and regions, the Bitget exchange is committed to helping users trade smarter with its pioneering copy trading feature and other trading solutions, while offering real-time access to Bitcoin price, Ethereum price, and other cryptocurrency prices.

Bitget Wallet is a leading non-custodial crypto wallet supporting 130+ blockchains and millions of tokens. It offers multi-chain trading, staking, payments, and direct access to 20,000+ DApps, with advanced swaps and market insights built into a single platform.  

Bitget is driving crypto adoption through strategic partnerships, such as its role as the Official Crypto Partner of the World’s Top Football League, LALIGA, in EASTERN, SEA and LATAM markets. Aligned with its global impact strategy, Bitget has joined hands with UNICEF to support blockchain education for 1.1 million people by 2027.

In the world of motorsports, Bitget is the exclusive cryptocurrency exchange partner of MotoGP, one of the world’s most thrilling championships.

This new feature is a big step forward in Unlimit’s mission to deliver faster, more secure, and frictionless payment solutions that drive growth for merchants.

The Click-to-Pay feature simplifies the checkout process by removing the need for shoppers to manually enter their card details.

Instead, customers, who are part of their card schemes’  Click-to-Pay programmes, can seamlessly verify their identity through an email or phone number, allowing their payment information to be automatically populated. 

This not only accelerates the transaction process but also reduces fraud, thanks to the tokenization of the customers’ data, and checkout abandonment – the latter being a major concern for merchants all over the globe. 

The enhanced security, combined with streamlined verification, is expected to improve transaction approval rates and minimise payment rejections, contributing to higher conversion rates for businesses.

“With Click-to-Pay, we are addressing a major friction point in the online payment journey, while also enhancing security and boosting merchant performance,” said Irene Skrynova, chief customer officer at Unlimit. 

“The innovative payment solution will enable us to provide increased convenience to consumers and empower merchants to maximise revenue while mitigating fraud risks.”

The launch of Click-to-Pay comes amid growing demand for faster, more efficient digital transactions, particularly in e-commerce, and is supported by major card schemes.

With Click-to-pay, Unlimit strengthens its existing offering and enables merchants to offer a seamless and secure checkout experience to customers around the world.

The exponential increase in mobile payment transactions worldwide has heightened the vulnerability to cyber threats, emphasizing the critical need for robust security measures.

Moreover, the continuous evolution of mobile payment technologies, such as contactless payments and mobile wallets, requires adaptable security software to address emerging threats. In January 2022, around 51% of American adults used at least one form of contactless payment.

As the mobile payment landscape expands, businesses and consumers alike prioritize secure and frictionless transactions.

The integration of biometric authentication, encryption techniques, and real-time fraud detection mechanisms further augments the demand for security software.

The overall mobile payment security software industry is divided based on type, end-use industry, deployment model, application and region.

Tokenization segment is expected to witness substantial growth through 2032, driven by its effectiveness in enhancing transaction security.

By replacing sensitive cardholder information with unique tokens, this technology ensures that even if captured, the data remains meaningless to potential attackers. Inclination for securing payment transactions, coupled with the endorsement of tokenization by regulatory bodies will create secure environment for digital transactions.

Peer-to-peer payments segment is slated to generate notable revenues during 2023-2032. With the increasing adoption of P2P payment platforms for seamless fund transfers and transactions, there is a need for robust security measures.

As consumers seek convenient and secure ways to transfer funds digitally, the integration of advanced security features, such as encryption and authentication protocols will multiply the market revenues in the near future.

Europe mobile payment security software market size will record a notable growth through 2032 driven by the stringent data protection regulations, particularly under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

The increasing popularity of mobile wallets in the region propels the need for robust security measures, encouraging the adoption of cutting-edge mobile payment security software.

The collaborative efforts of financial institutions and technology providers will stimulate the market growth in Europe.

[Source]

At its most basic level, tokenization is the process of bringing Real World Assets (RWAs), both tangible and intangible, on-chain.

However, the impact that tokenization has on financial markets is far more reaching than just “things on chain.”

When assessing the impact, the Stellar network is one of the earliest examples of the true impact of tokenized RWAs and their potential for the future.

Stellar has already been collaborating with industry-leading financial institutions for several years to bring RWAs on-chain, and just recently released Protocol 20 to bring Soroban smart contract functionality to the network.

In turn, Stellar has become the preferred platform of major financial institutions like WisdomTree, Franklin Templeton and Circle, who have had their Stellar digital assets approved by regulatory agencies such as the SEC and NYDFS.

Stellar has additionally gained popularity outside of the United States, with other key players adopting the technology including ABN Amro and the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) Innovation Hub.

Situated as an early leader in tokenization, the Stellar network wasn’t improved on to support tokenization, but was primed for this use case from its inception.

As other networks look to get up to speed with tokenizations, Stellar’s native network features have continued to drive adoption from global financial institutions and support a strong conviction for the potential of on-chain RWAs.

In this article, we’re going to look at why tokenized RWAs present such an opportunity to disrupt traditional finance and why major institutions are upgrading their processes with Stellar.

Tokenized opportunity

One of the key differentiators between tokenization and other blockchain innovations is that tokenization provides a bilateral benefit to both the individuals who interact with tokenized RWAs and the institutions tokenizing the RWAs.

During a recent fireside chat, Denelle Dixon, the CEO of the Stellar Development Foundation, stated that one of the biggest impacts of tokenization for individuals is its ability to create financial access: “Financial access is the tool that we’re seeing now. Not only does it save value for the entities who are tokenizing, but [RWAs] bring opportunity for those who haven’t had the opportunity to grasp it.”

Products like WisdomTree Prime are creating a unified save, spend and invest experience for individuals to generate yield that would otherwise be inaccessible through traditional means like a checking account. Stablecoins like USDC also provide far-reaching financial access around the world by giving anyone the opportunity to gain USD exposure regardless of where they are.

For institutions, tokenization is an opportunity to drive cost savings and maximize efficiency. In terms of savings, asset issuers can realize operational efficiencies and reduce backend costs by removing manual processes and intermediaries. For a product like a money market, tokenization can increase liquidity while reducing intermediary fees for compliance reporting, monitoring, management and third-party brokerage.

Tokenization also offers a massive boost in efficiency.

Today’s financial system is often weighed down with physical documents being transferred, and long settlement periods often as the result of bureaucracy.

With tokenization, settlement is immediate and final, nearly eliminating the information gap between transaction and settlement.

The impact can be significant, like with Liquid Mortgage, where tokenization reduced Mortgage-Backed Securities (MBS) reporting from 55 days to 30 minutes.

Stellar benefits

From stablecoin issuance to tokenized treasuries, Stellar is a leader in tokenized real-world assets. According to data from the RWA.xyz, Stellar-based RWAs make up about 40% of the tokenized treasury market, making it the second largest blockchain by TVL.

For many global financial institutions today, the Stellar blockchain is the ideal platform for asset tokenization. Why? For Franklin Templeton, it was the network’s low-cost, built-in asset controls and compliance features, and a simple, streamlined developer experience.

While major decisions like this are typically made through partnership, Franklin Templeton’s decision simply came down to the benefits of the network and its accessibility as an open-source project.

During a panel discussion at the World Economic Forum, Dixon said that she first learned of Franklin Templeton’s use of Stellar when she saw its SEC filing in 2019 signaling that it had started work on its money market. “It’s been really wonderful to work with them to understand why they did it and also the value that it’s bringing to their new customers on the Benji app,” Dixon continued.

As Franklin Templeton was working to bring its mutual market fund to the network and showcasing the potential of integration of traditional finance with blockchain technology, other financial institutions started to take on experiments of their own.

With Stellar, asset issuers benefit from powerful built-in features, enabling businesses to tokenize real world-assets quickly with limited expertise needed, low development costs and strong asset issuer controls.

Support for asset issuers doesn’t just stop at the network level. To facilitate easy and low-cost asset tokenization, Stellar has worked with Fireblocks, Bitgo, Copper and other asset issuance service providers to support a range of services like custody and analytics.

The Stellar ecosystem also hosts a variety of platforms, wallets and on- and off-ramps to support newly minted assets.

This expansive ecosystem allows asset issuers to grow their addressable markets by making assets available through the many companies building on Stellar.

Conclusion

Tokenizing assets on Stellar is user-friendly and efficient, with the ability to issue any asset in only four steps, without a smart contract needed.

Now, with the launch of smart contracts on Stellar, the use of asset tokenization will continue to expand further into everyday financial products like lending, borrowing, savings and automatic yield calculations.

Learn more about tokenization on Stellar and try out its sandbox environment to explore the tokenization process on the Stellar Testnet with no code required.

The tokenization of RWAs will undoubtedly be one of the biggest innovations the modern financial industry has ever experienced.

As both individuals and institutions are beginning to discover the opportunities presented by tokenization, Stellar continues to break down barriers to entry and support the next generation of finance.

Financial inclusion supports inclusive development and is a key enabler for many of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). While progress has been made to advance the financial inclusion of the world’s young people (aged 15-24), a recent report by OECD shows that almost half are still financially excluded.

In fact, less than 37% of youngsters in sub-Saharan Africa are financially included in the formal banking sector.

Currently, Nigeria’s population stands at more than 217 million, according to the Worldometer. The youth accounts for 70 percent of the 217 million, which stands at a huge 151 million youths.

Interestingly, the millennials are the largest adult generation in the country with spending power, giving them the largest buying power of any generation.

While many are already reaching their mid-30s, banks have largely left millennial banking habits out of the picture when developing marketing strategies.

Some of the technologies and financial services that young people are increasingly opting for include e-wallets, app-based banking, QR-code based mobile payment systems, mobile apps, and mobile money.

Now you understand why the partnership among Interswitch, Mastercard, Thales Group and Providus Bank that led to the launch of tokenization and digitization initiative to the Nigerian market is crucial. Tokenization is a generalized concept of a cryptographic hash. It means representing something by a symbol (‘token’).

The mobile-first generation, internet savvy and app-based service consumers now have limitless opportunities to be financially inclusive and empowered.

The solution allows Providus Bank cardholders to make use of tokenized transactions online and perform ‘contactless’ tap-to-pay transactions via their mobile devices and wearables.

By combining the powers of Interswitch and Thales, Providus Bank, for instance, would plug to Mastercard Digital Enablement Service (MDES) to offer consumers, merchants, and financial institutions the much-needed capability for making a payment without touching a physical device at the point of sale.

Thales’ Trusted Service Hub (TSH) solution is powering up the connection to the Mastercard MDES platform in order to launch on the Providus Mobile application and eMerchants.

On behalf of Providus, Thales TSH is managing the flow and internal logic put in place to digitize the card, manage its lifecycle, and then use it to make payments.

Why Tokenization is Key in Today’s Banking Sector

Curbing fraud:

One of the greatest issues faced in the banking sector is how to innovatively curb fraud and reduce data risk with simple, secure and scalable solutions. A Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System Plc (NIBSS) report released in August last year showed that eight deposit money banks in the country lost a total of N1.9bn as a result of fraudulent incidents in 2020.

The report also revealed that ATM, internet banking, mobile and impersonation fraud cases cost the banks N830.1m, N37.7m, N16.2m, and N989,700, respectively.

Therefore, companies like Interswitch have taken up the challenge to build the future of protected payments. Tokenization is a major asset when considering data protection.

Tokenization solution improves transaction security by replacing sensitive account information, such as the 16-digit account number, with a unique digital identifier called a token.

Simply put, fraud is contained across the digital ecosystem by turning primary account numbers (PANs) into digital tokens.

Securing payment file

Card-on-file is the process of collecting initial card data to store and use for recurring payments, for example. During the card-on-file process, tokens are requested and stored instead of credit card data.

At each renewal period, the system will automatically send the tokens to the token gateway and charge the right account via de-tokenization. This is another sure way to increase data protection in the payment industry.

Tokenization will reduce false declines

In some cases, false decline occurs when a genuine customer within their spend limit cannot consumate an online transaction. The reasons behind this are complex and the error messages are usually generic.

It has been proven that Network EMV tokenization reduces such false positives. Therefore, uninterrupted lifecycle management of network tokens provides additional visibility for the potential to increase approval rates and reduce false declines.

All EMV transactional data will be tokens

The actual trend in the EMV tokenization is that all transaction data will become tokens! Not just the Primary Account Number or related card data. In other words, you should expect an end-to-end solution with robust customer service capabilities.

Banking in the 5G era

5G has been launched in Nigeria, ushering in an era of Internet of Things (IoT), smart homes, smart transportation, smart health, smart agriculture, amongst others.

With the amount of speed 5G brings, it is important that payment for subscriptions to IoT services and the likes must be protected. We are talking about cybersecurity in the payment system.

So, tokenization is at the heart of connected devices (protection) and will allow users carry out financial transactions using their electronic devices or payment cards knowing that such transactions are safe and secure.

Are there Challenges with Tokenization?

First, tokenization is not trivial. It is erroneous to believe that tokenization is elementary and an average programmer could create a hash function that will transform any sort of information into tokens.

The design issues that challenge a good token generation service include: the token vault where the dictionary information/token is maintained must be secure. If not, there is no real point in the whole tokenization process.

It must be collision-free otherwise there will be a risk that the wrong account may be charged in lieu of the right one!

Speed is also key. The token generation and comparison in the vault should be fast and tokens should not be able to be corrupted by hardware or electrical faults. 

This is just an overview of the potential challenges created by a token generation service. Evidently, the teams at Interswitch, Mastercard, Thales and Providus Bank understand these challenges and have acquired a good grasp of mitigating against them.

Jonah Adams, Managing Director, Digital Infrastructure and Managed Services, (Interswitch Systegra) explained that the collaboration that birthed the tokenization was crucial, as it opened up realms of possibilities in the payments ecosystem, not only within Nigeria but in Africa as a whole.

Babatunde Okufi, Group Head, Business Development, Interswitch Purepay, also emphasized the need for fintechs and financial institutions to design more innovative and intuitive solutions that keep the funds and data of end users safe.

In his words, “The emergence of COVID-19 shifted consumer behaviour. And as more consumers get on the digital payments train, there will equally be more fraud cases. Fraudsters innovate, and players in the payments space should also innovate to ensure that they gain higher grounds on these cyber attackers.”

Okufi noted that to curb the prevailing cases of e-fraud, rules have been instituted. These rules include the introduction of transaction limitations, leveraging Artificial Intelligence (AI), and effective fund transaction tracking between sender and receiver.

Frank Atat, Divisional Head, eBusiness, Providus Bank, in his submission proffered those partnerships between key stakeholders remain crucial in helping to improve payment convenience and reduce cyber threats through the deployment of cyber tools.

Echoing Atat’s sentiments was Peter Ehizogie, Regional Manager, Product Sales-Cyber & Intelligence Solutions (West Africa), Mastercard, who said that consumers would naturally gravitate towards digital payments once they are able to trust payment platforms with their funds.

“Collaborations between players in the payments space will aid the widespread adoption of digital payment, and this can only be achieved when we have gained the trust of these consumers,” Ehizogie said.

Conclusion

The COVID-19 pandemic experience resulted in a consumer behavior shift. It has also caused reduced interaction with cash. As technology and digital innovators, Interswitch, Mastercard and Thales Group have introduced a cost-effective, efficient and reliable solution – tokenization – in the Nigerian banking sector, Providus Bank has adopted the solution and there are expectations that the benefits will spread to all stakeholders in the economy.

The innovation behind the MDES tokenization and digitization solution seeks to contribute to a cashless society that works for everyone. From all indications, tokenization is a major asset for the banking sector, particularly when considering its data protection capabilities. However, it is not the same technique as encryption and must be considered to be used in addition to encryption in banking transactions. Our joy is that tokenization is a very efficient way to prevent the leakage of credit card data, especially PANs, and its propensity for data protection.

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Peter Oluka is the Editor of TechEconomy.ng; a digital platform offering News-as-a-Service.

The breakfast session, which was held at the Golden Tulip Hotel, Ibadan, Oyo state, was organised to discuss how businesses can leverage digital payment to unlock endless opportunities and drive growth in the financial industry.

The event gave stakeholders the opportunity to also deliberate on salient issues pertaining to the industry.

The Ibadan event was the first in a series of breakfast sessions which Interswitch is organizing across five cities in the country including Port Harcourt, Enugu, Abuja and Lagos. 

During the event, customers were onboarded onto the recently launched Interswitch products including Tokenization; Fintech-in-a-box; Fraud-solution-as-a-Services; Banking-as-a-service; Payment-as-a- service; Interswitch Security-as-a-service; Mobile Banking-as -a-service and Biometrics on POS and Value financing.

The products are designed to address prevailing issues within the payment ecosystem and financial industry, enhance business development, foster partnership and boost customer experience.

Speaking at the event, Tunji Ashiru, Regional Head, South-West at Interswitch, said it was imperative to gather stakeholders to deliberate on how to leverage digital payment to redefine the payment industry and appreciate customer’s support for the company.

He said “Interswitch has organised the Breakfast Sessions to help customers unlock endless opportunities through digital payment, as well as build a more robust and secure payment ecosystem and a more collaborative financial industry. We believe with these sessions, we can provide expert guidance to businesses to enable them to thrive.”

He further said “Over the years, we have carefully tailored our offerings through advanced technology to speak to the passion points of our customers. We are excited about this opportunity to engage with them, and we continue to look forward to collaborating with them to build a prosperous African economy”.  

Customers were also awarded for their outstanding performance and unwavering support to the company over the years.

This submission was made at the official unveiling of the tokenization solution jointly developed by Interswitch, Providus Bank, Mastercard, and Thales Group, where industry experts also gathered to discuss current and future trends in the payments space.

One of the key trends highlighted at the event was the demand for more convenient, accessible, and secure means of conducting everyday financial transactions by consumers, a trend which had prompted the introduction of the tokenization solution, with the aim of encouraging more Nigerians to accept cashless transactions.

In his opening remarks, Jonah Adams, Managing Director, Digital Infrastructure and Managed Services, Interswitch Group, explained that the collaboration that birthed the tokenization was crucial, as it opened up realms of possibilities in the payments ecosystem, not only within Nigeria but in Africa as a whole.

He noted that the tokenization solution was a first-of-its-kind solution in West Africa and the sub-Saharan region, with everyday transactions happening at the speed of thought, and posited that it would transform the payment space and merchant acquiring space.

According to him, tokenization as a solution was designed to enable more personalized, speedy, secure and convenient payment interactions.

Tokenization enables consumers’ 16-digit Permanent Account Numbers (PAN) to be replaced with unique identifiers to keep fraudsters from accessing the personal details of end users.

Tokenization is at the heart of connected devices and will allow users to carry out financial transactions using their electronic devices or payment cards knowing that such transactions are safe and secure.

Speaking during the panel session on the need for timely solutions such as tokenization, Babatunde Okufi, Group Head, Business Development, Interswitch Purepay, also emphasized the need for fintechs and financial institutions to design more innovative and intuitive solutions that keep the funds and data of end users safe.

In his words, “The emergence of COVID-19 shifted consumer behaviour. And as more consumers get on the digital payments train, there will equally be more fraud cases. Fraudsters innovate, and players in the payments space should also innovate to ensure that they gain higher grounds on these cyber attackers.”

Okufi noted that to curb the prevailing cases of e-fraud, rules have been instituted. These rules include the introduction of transaction limitations, leveraging Artificial Intelligence (AI), and effective fund transaction tracking between sender and receiver.

Frank Atat, Divisional Head, eBusiness, Providus Bank, who was also a panelist, proffered that partnerships between key stakeholders remain crucial in helping to improve payment convenience and reduce cyber threats through the deployment of cyber tools.

Atat noted that with more stringent safety measures, consumers would increasingly adopt digital payment methods , adding that many Nigerians were unaware of the benefits of digital payments owing to the lack of widespread awareness. However, to address this challenge, he suggested collaboration between players in the ecosystem.

Echoing Atat’s sentiments was Peter Ehizogie, Regional Manager, Product Sales-Cyber & Intelligence Solutions (West Africa), Mastercard, who said that consumers would naturally gravitate towards digital payments once they are able to trust payment platforms with their funds.

“Collaborations between players in the payments space will aid the widespread adoption of digital payment, and this can only be achieved when we have gained the trust of these consumers,” Ehizogie said.