Michelle Knowles is the director of commerce and working capital (Pan Africa) to the ABSA Group regional group. She explains how innovation and technology modify finances in Africa.
Global finance: How does innovation transform banking services into Africa?
Michelle Knowles: Innovation in Africa has created a more inclusive and more effective financial ecosystem by stimulating economic growth and empowering emerging populations. At ASSA, our solutions help our customers’ companies to develop so that the communities where they operate can prosper. We believe that innovation will help support African trade, which also allows economic growth.
Girlfriend:: Where do technology and innovation have the greatest impact in finance?
Knowles: Digital banking solutions have opened doors to millions of people who did not have access to traditional banking services. AI and automatic learning help analyze models, detect anomalies and prevent fraud more effectively while improving our sustainability efforts. Transparent digital platforms such as our online commercial management channel change the situation, raising customer service while improving user engagement.
Girlfriend:: What makes Absa different from its competitors?
Knowles: ASSA has a customer -centered model and digitally compatible. The preparation of the “customer of the future” means continuously improving our capacities and access points via online and mobile APIs and platforms, offering tailor -made service options to our customers, and sharing and taking advantage of research and industry ideas.
We are a company focused on data and focused on the customer, and by rationalizing our products in different markets, we create a coherent experience for Pan Africa customers. Our technologies, products and processes facilitate access to trade financing, which is essential to facilitate trade flows. Technological investments such as APIs and the ability to collaborate closely with key fintechs help us in the essential digitization of trade financing and at the end of our commercial financing systems.
Girlfriend:: How does ASSA innovate in the financing of trade for Africa?
Knowles: By automating and rationalizing processes, ASSA can considerably reduce costs and increase the availability of business financing. Our digitization strategy for trade financing includes a customer portal built on open source architecture so that the bank can integrate into various ecosystems via APIs, guaranteeing effective connections with partners and strategic systems. With megadonts and AI, we optimize key processes, automation of compliance controls and improvement of risk management. ASSA also collaborates with development financing institutions and fintechs to digitally transform trade financing and ensure that innovative technologies are effectively implemented.
Girlfriend:: How do you work with African entrepreneurs?
Knowles: There are several promising opportunities, especially in the fields that fall under key challenges and take advantage of the unique forces of the continent. The entrepreneurship program for young people, a collaboration between Absa and the Young African Entrepreneurs Institute, is a flagship initiative designed to fill the gap between young innovators and opportunities so that they can establish prosperous companies. The program offers support for commercial advice, skills development, mentoring and funding to help young people go from innovation to formalized businesses.
In addition, Absa Bank Zambia’s Mosi-Oa-Tuna Innovation Hub is an incubator for local businesses in the tourism and agriculture sectors in this country, offering training, mentorship and digital tools to help entrepreneurs develop their products or services.
Girlfriend:: How does Asa use technology to overcome commercial challenges?
Knowles: Facilitating access to trade financing is essential to support African and crucial trade for trade flows. And trade financing has always been a fundamental component of ASSSA transactional banking services. ABSA continues to observe the growing demand for its commercial financing solutions and has intensified its efforts to become a main commercial financing provider across the continent.
In addition, ASSA supports the African Agreement of the Continental Free Trade area (AFCFTA), which is an essential step in the increase in intra-African trade. We understand that the digitization of commercial finances helps us to develop and simplify access to finance. To date, ASSA has implemented online trade management, a secure online banking banking platform where customers can initiate, receive and manage the full life cycle of commercial financing products and services.
We have also provided significant and improved risk management gains by integrating, for example, optical character recognition and workflow automation in our treatment systems. This has considerably reduced manual intervention, improved recovery times and improved the accuracy of documentation processing. Our digital approach and focused on risk management data allows us to proactively monitoring exhibitions, customer behavior and trends, which allows our teams to make faster and more enlightened decisions.