FINANCIAL INCLUSION: Data could be Leveraged to Ensure, says Deremi Atanda

Executive Director of SystemSpecs, Deremi Atanda recently made a strong case for those at the lower rungs of Financial inclusion.

Speaking as a panellist in a session titled, “New Algorithm for the Financially Excluded” at the Artificial Intelligence for Financial Inclusion Summit, organised by Data Science Nigeria, Atanda noted that one of the ways to alleviate poverty in Nigeria is by extending the network of financial inclusion through a collaborative approach. He further revealed that majority of those who are purported to be financially included merely operate at the ephemeral base of that circle.

According to him, “Today, many of the people operating are working on finding data, and Artificial Intelligence is able to help us leverage this huge asset we have to address the financial inclusion issue. Many times, we think it’s about banking, but it is not about banking.

“It is to see how data could be leveraged in a collaborative way to ensure that people are financially included. Those of us who think we are financially included, almost 80% of us are just at the base of that pyramid. We are just making transactions, and that’s where a lot of people are focused.”

Mr Atanda further stressed that although, there are a lot of people with data asset, they do not know that such asset can be leveraged for credit, counting that “when you have credit, you can extend prosperity”. He added that SystemSpecs has come up with a technology that makes it impossible for there to be default in payment of credit.

Other speakers on the panel include includes Lagos Business School Don, Dr Olayinka David-West; Head, Financial Inclusion, CBN, Mrs Temitope Akin-Fadeyi; Executive Director, FCMB, Olu Akanmu; Chief Digital Officer, ALAT (Wema Bank), Dele Adeyinka; and Vice President/ Area business head, Master Card, West Africa, Mr Omokehinde Adebanjo.