Patrick Awori, Founder and CEO at Imaginarium, a Kenyan-based FinTech behind the Circle, a virtual savings platform, hosted another episode of Voice of FinTech: Africa Series. Patrick spoke to Andrew Barden, Director of Insights at Dedalus Global | Lead Organizer and Content Director at Africa Fintech Summit about the state of play on the African FinTech scene and the upcoming Africa Fintech Summit in South Africa.

See more background here:

Despite global tech media coverage being awash with stories of falling start-up valuations and sell-offs witnessed in once-vibrant sectors, Africa is largely defying global trends in VC funding. African start-ups are expected to raise about US$ 7 billion by the end of 2022, representing an almost 60% increase in start-up funding from the previous year, which would be raised by a diverse mix of local and global investors. Fintech continues to dominate, raising about 54% of all venture funding in the continent in 2021. Many reasons have been given for the continued growth witnessed in Africa’s fintech sector, including the fact that these start-ups are solving big problems such as access. Others given include the base effect, and st revenue traction and so on. Whatever the case, Africa continues to attract interest and how long the boom will last is anybody’s guess. To discuss what he calls “the Africanisation of global fintech,” we interview Andrew Barden, Director of Insights at Dedalus Global, and the Lead Organizer and Content Director at the Africa Fintech Summit. In the episode, Andrew shares his outlook on the state of the sector, tips on how business leaders can build resilience in the face of global economic hardship, and what the general factors that make African markets attractive for investment are, from his perspective as a Strategy Consultant and Lead Organizer of the African Fintech Summit, the continent’s leading fintech-focused conference. Finally, we discuss in detail what to expect at the 8th edition of the Africa Fintech Summit, which is coming up in November to be held in Capetown, South Africa, and how to participate in the conference and associated events. He describes why the AFTS is a unique space where ideas are explored, investments are mobilized, and collaborations are formed across sectors and geographies.