The Financial Technology industry in Ghana continues to rise above imagination as regards the rate of attraction from both domestic and foreign direct investments characterising its operations.

Ghana has, over the past few years, experienced the trend of fast-rising Fintech companies in and outside the country.  Over 70 Fintech companies are estimated to be operating in Ghana and making giant strides in the industry.

Fintech is an abbreviation for Financial Technology. It refers to using technology to improve and automate traditional financial services and processes.

Some of these services include online banking, mobile payments, peer-to-peer lending, digital wallets and financial management tools. Interestingly, fintech companies in Ghana go through series of rigorous screenings from the Bank of Ghana (the regulating authority) before they are accorded their licenses to operate.

Fintechs in Ghana have come to stay as they make payments and financial transactions easier and more convenient for Ghana’s residents. However, fintechs who will lead is those who can position more financial solutions and services in their apps at the disposal of their customers as well as anticipate solutions to clients’ requests and needs.

One of the challenges to fintech adoption in Ghana is the lack of digital literacy among the population. Many people in Ghana, particularly those living in rural areas, may not be familiar with the use of digital technologies and may not have the necessary skills to use Fintech solutions.

Data security

Challenges in the fintech industry include data security.

There were 1,862 data breaches with an average cost of $4.24 million in 2021. This is a new all-time high, leading to even bigger concerns regarding cybersecurity in banking. Companies must be aware that they risk losing not only their reputation but also their money. To prevent a potential breach, you have to build a FinTech app that includes these features: Two-factor authentication, Biometric authentication

Regulatory compliance

One of the challenges in FinTech is the fact that this high-risk industry is ridden with government regulations. Companies must adhere to several laws such as the GDPR, GLBA, the Wiretap Act, the Money Laundering Control Act, and many others.

Lack of tech expertise

Many banks and financial companies use outdated software or struggle to innovate in the area of mobile banking. This is a significant issue because their apps aren’t user-friendly and intuitive. Although we may currently witness the constant focus shift to providing a better user experience, the process is still lengthy.

NFC support

You can use Fintech application development services to get a team of top-level experts working on your project. This will help you implement any feature to compete with the market’s leading players.

User retention and user experience

Keeping users engaged is one of the most common Fintech challenges. Low retention means fewer users, resulting in reduced income.

You can monitor the approaches used by your competitors to see how they impact the user experience. Seeing different practice methods will help you choose the best options for your startup.

Acknowledging the challenges confronting the sector, the Vice President, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia has indicated that the government has plans to set up a FinTech Innovation Fund to support Start-ups to drive Ghana’s digital revolution.

He made this known during the maiden 3i Africa Summit which held in Accra from May 13 to 15, 2024, on the theme: “Unleashing Africa’s FinTech and Digital Economic Potential”.

Vice President Bawumia, who had championed the government’s national digitalisation agenda, over the past seven years, said the path to Ghana’s digital revolution was through Fintech, hence, it was imperative to support them financially to thrive.

He, therefore, encouraged all stakeholders in the fintech and digital industry to join forces in improving the legislative and regulatory environment to enhance the payments ecosystem and position Ghana on the path of sustained financial inclusion.

The power of technology, Dr Bawumia noted, would improve productivity and connectivity to empower individuals through Fintech startups, as well as small and medium-scale businesses to increase innovation and efficiency in the operations of institutions.

The government, in the past seven years, has focused on pursuing a digital transformation agenda as part of its economic strategy at the individual and institutional levels.

“The objective is to ensure digital empowerment for a prosperous future in this accelerated digital era, where the use of modern and emerging technologies have become commonplace and a catalyst for growth, progress, and prosperity,” Dr Bawumia stated.

Top 10 Fintech companies in Ghana and what makes each unique

1. MTN Mobile Money (popularly called MTN Momo) is an offshoot of MTN, one of Ghana’s largest telecoms networks, is one of Ghana’s foremost Fintech platforms, which provides consumers and businesses with a bouquet of digital financial services.

2. Zeepay – trend setter

Zeepay, one of Ghana’s fast-rising Fintech companies, specializes in mobile money interoperability and international remittance.

3. Hubtel - Hubtel remains one of Ghana’s most versatile fintech companies. It provides mobile payment, bulk SMS, and e-commerce solutions. Their POS platform allows businesses to accept mobile money, cards, and QR codes.

4. Expresspay -Expresspay is one of Ghana’s prominent fintech companies that provides electronic payment solutions.

5. Kowri- Kowri, one of Ghana’s fastest-rising all-inclusive digital financial apps, is a service from Sevn Ghana Limited (formerly DreamOval Limited).

6. Finance Plus -Finance Plus is a fintech app by Cube Robotics, one of the licensed fintech companies in Ghana.

7. Ghanapay - Ghanapay is a payment app rolled out by Ghana Interbank Payment Settlement Systems Limited (GhIPSS).

8. Chango -Chango is a crowdfunding platform rolled out by IT Consortium (ITC) one of Ghana’s largest B2B fintech companies.

9. Slydepay - Slydepay was created by Dreamoval Limited and is powered by Stanbic Bank Ghana. 10.

10: Payswitch: Payswitch is one of the few fintech companies that allows businesses to accept payments via multiple channels, such as mobile money, cards (VISA and Mastercard), and other online platforms.

According to the Governor of the Bank of Ghana, Dr. Ernest Addison, harnessing the power of technology, sharing the African Fintech narrative, and creating an environment for fintechs will cushion it to be successful.

To unleash the fintech and digital economic potential of Africa, Dr Addison underscored the need for fintechs to have the ability to navigate regulatory requirements and meet compliance standards.

Dr Addison also said there is a need to address the information gap between investors and Fintech startups to stimulate the payment ecosystem.

He pointed to high mobile phone penetration coupled with a pool of local technology talents, which has resulted in various fintech solutions that have expanded access to financial services for the unbanked and the underserved on the continent.

“Mobile money, a game-changer product that is central to most digital payment innovations in African countries, is enabling e-commerce and serving as an affordable solution for merchant acceptance of digital payments.”