A fresh report published by the MENA Fintech Association‘s (MFTA) Open Finance Working Group emphasises the importance of embedded finance to the Middle East and North Africa region, and how open banking and open finance are continuing to fuel its growth.
Businesses around the world have sustained a considerable interest in embedded finance products and services. This is namely due to the benefits it poses to the online customer journey, alongside enabling businesses to act as a fintech would
The latest report from MFTA’s Open Finance Working Group lays clear the benefits of embedded finance and delves into why it’s quickly becoming the ‘must-have’ product for both banks and non-financial firms in the MENA region.
The report recognises embedded finance’s capabilities in enabling ‘any brand to incorporate innovative financial services swiftly and affordably into consumer experiences’.
It also goes on to state that the use of application programming interfaces (APIs) for sharing customer-permissioned data and banking capabilities makes embedded finance ‘an efficient and convenient option for providers and recipients of all sizes’.
For this reason, the Group’s report identifies embedded finance’s applicability across a range of industries as something that can be re-engineered and applied to any specific field.
A global opportunity for payments
The MFTA’s embedded finance report succeeds its SHIFT report published back in April; a multivolume comprehensive guide for the global fintech community to better navigate the payment landscape of the MENA region.
Nameer Khan, MFTA chairman and founding board member, recognises the MENA region as a “global opportunity hub” and how the region’s demonstrated leadership “has created tremendous opportunities to further amplify the impact on a global stage.”
“The evolution of technologies being built and scaled from and outside the region is phenomenal,” adds Khan.
The report seizes expert opinions and sources from across the fintech industry, including insights provided by The London Institute of Banking and Finance (LIBF), Mastercard and Tarabut Gateway.
“The use of APIs for sharing customer-permissioned data and banking capabilities makes embedded finance an efficient and convenient option for providers and recipients of all sizes,” explains Hakan Eroglu, global open banking and open data practice lead, D&S at Mastercard.
“Embedded finance is now making that growth a reality in MENA by allowing almost any brand—big or small—that adopts APIs to become a fintech company,” continues Eroglu.
Adding to these thoughts, Kareem Refaay, MD of MENA and GGC at LIBF, said: “Integrating payments into the online sales journey might not sound like a disruptive use of technology, but it’s a billion-dollar business, and here [in the report] we explain why.”
“On behalf of LIBF MENA, we are very pleased with the reception of the past reports, and they drive us to continue delivering impactful insights to the region,” concludes Refaay.
Image and article originally from thefintechtimes.com. Read the original article here.