15.12.2023
Forecasts of financiers for 2024: the main theses of UAFIN.TECH conference
On December 15, representatives of the financial industry discussed the development of fintech in Ukraine. More than 1000 participants of UAFIN.TECH: reImagine the Futureʼ2023 conference had the opportunity to learn about the threats, prospects and expectations of the fintech industry.
Rostyslav Dyuk, Chairman of the Board of the Ukrainian Association of Fintech and Innovative Companies, spoke about the ideal conditions for digital banking, emphasising the changes that have taken place over the past 5 years.
"We made an assessment of the fintech sector and even during the full-scale war it was worth more than a billion US dollars, although 5 years ago it was only 50 million dollars. Despite all the events, the sector is growing. And this means that the value it provides to consumers is great. The challenge in 2024, in addition to cybersecurity, is artificial intelligence, which has broken into all sectors of the economy. Banks are actively involving AI in their operations, so the trend next year will be the edge of artificial intelligence penetration in the financial sector," Rostyslav Dyuk said.
"We made an assessment of the fintech sector and even during the full-scale war it was worth more than a billion US dollars, although 5 years ago it was only 50 million dollars. Despite all the events, the sector is growing. And this means that the value it provides to consumers is great. The challenge in 2024, in addition to cybersecurity, is artificial intelligence, which has broken into all sectors of the economy. Banks are actively involving AI in their operations, so the trend next year will be the edge of artificial intelligence penetration in the financial sector," Rostyslav Dyuk said.
Ukrainian banking is preparing for the future
During the panel discussion "Future of Ukraine", participants discussed the challenges facing Ukraine in the process of European integration. Among the topics discussed were the return of millions of Ukrainians from the EU, the role of fintech in this process, and the integration of military veterans into the financial sector. The speakers of the panel were Shevki Adjuner, Yulia Vitka, Sergiy Poznyak, Victoria Strakhova, and Natalia Butkova-Vitvitska.
"We need to develop alternative financing instruments, such as factoring, leasing, etc. I also call for efforts to develop the insurance market in accordance with international standards so that businesses have appropriate insurance products, remove obstacles to trade finance, and actively implement those directives related to fintech and digitalisation," said Yulia Vitka, Deputy Chief of Party of the USAID Financial Sector Reform Project.
During the panel discussion "Future of Ukraine", participants discussed the challenges facing Ukraine in the process of European integration. Among the topics discussed were the return of millions of Ukrainians from the EU, the role of fintech in this process, and the integration of military veterans into the financial sector. The speakers of the panel were Shevki Adjuner, Yulia Vitka, Sergiy Poznyak, Victoria Strakhova, and Natalia Butkova-Vitvitska.
"We need to develop alternative financing instruments, such as factoring, leasing, etc. I also call for efforts to develop the insurance market in accordance with international standards so that businesses have appropriate insurance products, remove obstacles to trade finance, and actively implement those directives related to fintech and digitalisation," said Yulia Vitka, Deputy Chief of Party of the USAID Financial Sector Reform Project.
Panelist Sergiy Poznyak, Chairman of the Association of ATO Veteran Entrepreneurs, stressed the importance of creating fintech solutions for veteran companies. He noted that ensuring data security, information exchange, and communication stability is the basis for running a veteran business.
"We will have more than 2.5 million combatants, including entrepreneurs. The financial system, in the context of EU integration, must respond to such a significant number of people with a specific financial and property status. They need support and special funding programmes for both veteran businesses and individuals. The creation of special financial programmes for veterans will help restore successful businesses that will boost the country's economy," said Sergiy Poznyak.
"We will have more than 2.5 million combatants, including entrepreneurs. The financial system, in the context of EU integration, must respond to such a significant number of people with a specific financial and property status. They need support and special funding programmes for both veteran businesses and individuals. The creation of special financial programmes for veterans will help restore successful businesses that will boost the country's economy," said Sergiy Poznyak.
The conference traditionally gathers key experts from the financial and technology sectors to discuss interesting insights, important strategies, exchange of experience and valuable networking.
Valeriy Novikov, Director of Commerce Development at Mastercard Ukraine, presented the latest statistics on cashless payments in his report "Fintech services in retail": 84% of Ukrainians have a bank account, and 9 out of 10 transactions with payment cards are cashless.
"Ukraine is a leading country in terms of the introduction of payment technologies and various digital services, and some of them have become especially relevant during the war. For example, the 'Cash at the checkout' service, which allows you to withdraw cash from your card account at the checkout of a retail outlet when making a cashless payment, has provided Ukrainians with unimpeded access to their account balances. In addition, we are currently actively working on a mirror service, Cash to Card, which allows you to top up your card at the cash desks of retail outlets. Thus, by integrating the service with the Diia app, we managed to increase the limit for a single card top-up tenfold - from UAH 5,000 to UAH 50,000. This approach of cooperation between financial players and various market participants allows us to expand the payment capabilities of users," said Valery Novikov.
Valeriy Novikov, Director of Commerce Development at Mastercard Ukraine, presented the latest statistics on cashless payments in his report "Fintech services in retail": 84% of Ukrainians have a bank account, and 9 out of 10 transactions with payment cards are cashless.
"Ukraine is a leading country in terms of the introduction of payment technologies and various digital services, and some of them have become especially relevant during the war. For example, the 'Cash at the checkout' service, which allows you to withdraw cash from your card account at the checkout of a retail outlet when making a cashless payment, has provided Ukrainians with unimpeded access to their account balances. In addition, we are currently actively working on a mirror service, Cash to Card, which allows you to top up your card at the cash desks of retail outlets. Thus, by integrating the service with the Diia app, we managed to increase the limit for a single card top-up tenfold - from UAH 5,000 to UAH 50,000. This approach of cooperation between financial players and various market participants allows us to expand the payment capabilities of users," said Valery Novikov.
This year's conference UAFIN.TECH: reImagine the Futureʼ2023 is organised with the support of the general partner Mastercard and the USAID Financial Sector Reform Project, as well as with the support of the International Finance Corporation (IFC) in cooperation with the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) and the Good Governance Foundation of the UK Government in Ukraine (GGF).
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