The Bank of Ghana (BoG) has climaxed the year with its eCedi Hackathon maiden Awards.
BoG, in collaboration with EMTECH Solutions Inc., launched the eCedi Hackathon to provide opportunities for FinTechs, Developers and Innovators to design innovative solutions that explore various uses of a Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC).
It was designed to foster innovation, drive technological advancement and develop solutions that will redefine the Ghanaian financial landscape.
At the close of the submission of the Innovation Concept Note (ICN) on October 20, 2023, 88 ICNs were received.
The number was pruned down to 68 for the pitch day. Out of the 68 selected for the Pitch Day, 62 accepted the offer to pitch their solution.
After the Pitch Day, only 10 innovations were considered eligible for progression to the Demonstration Day.
The judges picked the best three (3) innovations among the ten (10), according to the competition criteria, vetted and supervised by Messrs KPMG, the assurance service provider of the eCedi Hackathon.
The three winners are Forward Titans, which came up as the ultimate Winner with GH500,000, Nokofio came as 1st runner up with GH300,000 and Pay Code was 2nd Runner-up with GH200,000.
The fascinating ideas and solutions generated by all the participants covered several areas including agriculture, government payments, business payments, taxation, securities, crowd funding, interoperability and credit scoring. The remaining seven will be awarded certificates of participation.
Addressing the gathering, the Governor of BoG, Dr. Ernest Addison, said the information and communication technology space is changing rapidly and impacting every segment of global activities.
The Bank of Ghana, the governor continued, has in in the past few years, championed policies and implemented financial market infrastructures that have created a supportive environment for the digital delivery of financial services.
“Currently, the financial sector can boast of a variety of digital financial services, including payment, credit, savings, and investment products that are offered by banks and FinTechs”, he said.
He noted that new business models have emerged through FinTech channels and removed barriers to micro-credit as well as paved way for affordable and convenient inward remittance services.
These interventions, he indicated, have fostered financial inclusion in the country, evidenced by the phenomenal improvement in financial access from 41% in 2014 to 68% in 2021, according to the Global Findex Report of the World Bank.
This statistic also demonstrates the potential of technology in facilitating financial development and improving inclusive economic development, societal welfare, as well as poverty reduction.
Despite the progress made, Dr. Addison noted that much remains to be done to meet the financial service needs of every citizen in meaningful ways.
He, therefore, called for an innovative mindset, creativity and collaboration in exploring novel solutions, of which a central bank digital currency is promising.
According to Dr. Addison, the Bank of Ghana’s Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) exploration journey is grounded on several policy imperatives, including financial inclusion, safety and efficiency of payments, and the growing digitalisation of the Ghanaian economy.
He concluded by congratulating all those who participated and wished them the best with the competition and the next steps in their endeavours.
