More than 600 technology and business executives from leading banks, insurance, and micro-finance institutions in the Philippines are expected to take part in a fintech event this coming August that’s been touted as the premier conference on technology and innovation for the Financial Services Industry (FSI).
Dubbed “World Financial Innovation Series (WFIS) 2022,” the 2-day hybrid event will be held at Sofitel Philippine Plaza in Manila from August 16 to 17. It aims to help shed light on the Philippines’ fintech market and enable financial inclusion in the region by offering common networking and intelligence-sharing platforms for the country’s burgeoning FSI community.
Tradepass, an accredited event company, will be hosting the WFIS for the first time in the Philippines.
Sudhir Jena, Organizer and CEO of Tradepass, said, “With the Philippines witnessing a record-high investment in fintech and the Filipinos becoming savvier and savvier with digitization, the WFIS 2022 – Philippines will be the perfect opportunity for the fintech providers to collaborate with the traditional financial institutions and other organizations wishing to incorporate fintech into their core infrastructure.”
WFIS 2022 – Philippines will host more than 30 thought-leaders and experts from the industry who will help shed light on the most pressing FSI topics focused on the latest tech innovations. The two-day event will also feature a live showcase of the best FSI solutions from leading financial service organizations, and a whole lot more.
One of the confirmed speakers, Lito Villanueva, Executive Vice President and Chief Innovation & Inclusion Officer of Rizal Commercial Banking Corporation, noted that “the bridge between the now and the future can only be built by disrupting the current conversation on technology and finance. These conversations spark limitless collaboration between leaders and trailblazers that create boundless innovation. The event is an opportunity to create not only innovation and disruption but also ‘disrup-innovation’.”
Another speaker, Roy Joseph Roberto, Assistant Vice President for Digital Transformation of Citibank in the Philippines, said, “Customer experience (CX) has now become a key differentiator while choosing a financial service platform. Realizing its inseparable nature with data science and AI, the financial services industry is gearing up with bigger investments in AI-enabled solutions. In that regard, World Financial Innovation Series serves as an ideal avenue for business and tech leaders to address the most pressing CX challenges and share how disruptive technology like AI can help bridge these gaps and transform DCX as we know it today.”
The recent launch of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP)’s “Digital Payments Transformation Roadmap 2020-2023” has been driving major fintech investments in the country today. Together with a surge in digitalization of financial services and a favorable regulatory landscape, the government’s program is now also fostering a rich fintech environment in the country.
With the advent of myriad online payment channels, cryptocurrency, and digital banks, the Philippines’ fintech firms have also witnessed total funding of $342 million in the first half of 2021, which is more than double what was been raised throughout 2020.
To top it all, there’s also the presence of over 50 million unbanked Filipinos which is only adding to the ultra-lucrative market.
Some of the other confirmed speakers for the event are as follows: DR. ADRIENNE HEINRICH, Vice President and Head of AI Center of Excellence of Union Bank of the Philippines; DHARMESH PATEL, Chief Data and Analytics Officer of East West Bank; LITO VILLANUEVA, EVP and Chief Innovation and Inclusion Officer of Rizal Commercial Banking Corporation; RONALDO BATISAN, Vice President for Customer Experience of Union Bank of the Philippines; ARIVUVEL RAMU, Group Chief Technology Officer of Tonik (Digital Bank); and CARLOS TENGKIAT, Chief Information Security Officer of Rizal Commercial Banking Corporation.
To know more about the event, visit https://philippines.worldfis.com/.