FINTECH SUMMIT - Finance and Technology Summit kicks off
FINTECH SUMMIT - Finance and Technology Summit: New Trends in Banking and Payment Ecosystem: Innovative Solutions, Fintechs and Security began its work on May 16-17, 2019.The summit was organized by Azerbaijan Banks Association with the support of the Financial Market Supervisory Authority of the Republic of Azerbaijan, the Central Bank of the Republic of Azerbaijan, the Ministry of Transport, Communications and High Technologies of the Republic of Azerbaijan and Center for Analysis of Economic Reforms and Communications.
In addition to relevant government agencies, banks and organizations represented in the payment ecosystem, the summit is attended by representatives of international financial organizations, local and foreign public organizations, as well as embassies of foreign countries in Azerbaijan. Some 100 international organizations and reputable companies from the USA, Japan, China, India, the European Union and CIS countries are also attending the event.
Minister of Transport, Communications and High Technologies of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ramin Guluzade delivered the opening address at the summit and declared the summit open.
“Strategic Road Map on Development of Telecommunication and Information Technologies in the Republic of Azerbaijan has set strategic targets for the development of telecommunication infrastructure in this sector. The expansion of the coverage area of the fiber optic network infrastructure and the introduction of LTE technologies in the mobile sector are among the main goals”. Noting that important work has been done in this direction, the minister said that these infrastructures are crucial for the development of modern financial services, internet and mobile banking.
“One of the priorities of the Strategic Road Map is the expansion of digital payments. In this context, the ministry closely cooperates with the Central Bank in the implementation of the State Program,” – the minister added.
According to the minister, in recent years, new types of development have emerged in the IT sector. Blockchain, cloud technologies, artificial intelligence, large data processing and others have been widely used. These technologies are also the basis of modern FinTech technologies. At present blockchain technologies have become a global phenomenon. New mechanisms for the introduction of these technologies are being developed.
Minister Ramin Guluzade spoke about the work done in the field of information technologies in the country and achievements. Saying the Ministry of Transport, Communications and High Technologies is interested in this field, the minister noted that startups play an important role in the development of modern technologies. He also said that the ministry is supporting the development of startups.
In turn, First Deputy Chairman of the Board of the Central Bank Alim Guliyev pointed out that the development of technology in the modern world has an impact on both the financial sector and all sectors of the economy. The value chain becomes even more complicated, new participants are entering the sector, as a result of which the participation of non-bank providers is rapidly expanding.
The expansion of the introduction of innovative solutions for financial technologies is constantly increasing interest in fintechs worldwide. Today, 80 percent of financial institutions are cooperating with fintechs. If in 2011 the volume of investments in fintechs worldwide was $1.8 billion, by the end of last year this figure reached $30.8 billion. In the future, as the performance indicator of fintechs increase, investments will also increase.
The Summit will cover four panels to be held on “Traditional and new technologies: changing face of banking - role of FinTechs”, “Payment ecosystem: new participants, new solutions”, “Security and Risks” and “State-of-the-art technology on debt recovery”.
In addition to international organizations, including the European Banking Federation, Russian Central Bank, Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication (SWIFT), TEB - BNP Paribas and other major banks, international card manufacturers Visa Inc., MasterCard Worldwide and American Express, the summit is also attended by representatives of leading organizations in the field of electronic payments and digital banking, such as Ernst & Young, Deloitte, Moody’s Investors Service, PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, KPMG, Yandex.Money, Interbank Card Center of Turkey (BKM), RBK Money, QIWI, Center of Financial Technologies (CFT Group), Group-IB and Compass Plus.
