Dr Ernest Addison – Governor BoG
SWIFT has announced that it will hold the 26th edition of the African Regional Conference (ARC) from 18-20 June 2019 in Accra, Ghana.
Supported by the Bank of Ghana (BoG), ARC 2019 will bring together over 500 leading financial services professionals from the African continent and beyond.
Delegates will discuss Africa’s evolving payments landscape, how the financial industry is embracing and delivering change for its customers and how to manage risk in an increasingly digitised world.
Dr Ernest Addison, Governor of the Bank of Ghana (BoG) said, “Ghana has recently undergone major reforms to overhaul its banking sector and improve governance.
“The SWIFT African Regional Conference comes at the opportune time, as we continue to engage financial services stakeholders and partners. We look forward to hosting hundreds of leading financial experts at ARC and discussing the most significant issues facing West Africa and the continent as a whole.”
Sido Bestani, Regional Director, Middle East, Turkey & Africa, SWIFT said: “West Africa is fast growing, fast moving and holds some of Africa’s most influential economies. The region has created a compelling and accessible marketplace, holds several regional payments systems and fosters a strong coherent voice through cooperation and regulatory alignment. We’re delighted that Accra will play host to SWIFT’s African Regional Conference and provide a backdrop for senior financial professionals to meet network and share best practices.”
The theme of this year’s African Regional Conference is ‘Enabling the digital economy.’
Sessions will focus on intra-African trade, financial inclusion, transformation of the payments sector, digital reinvention of payments – embracing new technology, re-engineering international payments for a fast, digital age, real-time payments, remaining relevant in an open banking world and how banks are embracing technology to optimise compliance.
SWIFT added that it will in due course announce the expert speakers and panelists set to participate in ARC 2019.