NASSAU, BAHAMAS — A digital payment solutions provider is touting ‘astronomical’ growth potential locally through enhanced education on digital payment technologies as it expands and advances its presence in West Africa and the Caribbean.
Nicholas Rees, Kanoo’s chairman speaking with Eyewitness News ahead of today’s opening of the Afriexim Bank’s annual meeting set to run until June 14, noted that the digital payments solutions provider, which will be displaying its solutions at the event, has made several investments to conduct business in Africa.
“We were invited to participate by the International Trade Center as a result of our collaborations with them over the past year; one of which was to co-host a free educational event for the public here in the Bahamas at Fusion Superplex. We brought in an international expert on Artificial Intelligence, and they highlighted some strategic entities they were working with. We were invited to showcase our solutions and services at the conference, which is quite an honor for us. The objective of the conference is a cross-border collaboration between the continent of Africa and businesses in the Caribbean and other regions,” said Rees.
Rees added, “We have embarked on an investment strategy around enhancing our technology, and we have since made several investments that find us now operating and doing business in Africa. We are collaborating with the Bank of Ghana on their central bank digital currency (CBDC) pilot along with some other central banks in West Africa. We also now have contracts signed with about five major banks in Africa for our wearable technology, the Ring Payment. We will have the wearable devices on display at the conference, which has been touted internationally as the preferred way to pay by nine out of ten persons. We are working with some banks in Africa as well as institutions in the Middle East right now as it relates to this technology. We want to showcase what the Bahamas is capable of. We are going to have available a touch-and-feel experience with our GovPay system, which is our system for government payments utilizing the Sand Dollar. We think it facilitates turnkey CBDC adoption. We are proud to represent the Bahamas, connecting the Caribbean and Africa through technology.”
Rees explained that Kanoo is looking for a partner for the continent of Africa for the Kanoo super app. “We are hopeful we can lock down on that entity hopefully before the end of this year. We are in conversations with several institutions and individuals that have expressed interest,” he said.
Apart from its international expansion, Rees noted that there is tremendous potential for growth locally, given more education around digital payment solutions. “I think the potential for growth here is astronomical. I think we have been testing the waters here so to speak. Right now, we have over 40,000 people and 500 businesses on our platform.”
He added, “We see a huge opportunity for growth not just in the Bahamas but regionally just through additional education, and as the education expands and persons become aware further adoption will grow. Right now, there is absolutely zero need for any bank branch in any of our family islands. Right now, that problem has been solved. It is a matter of making the public aware of how they can engage, and educating about the safety and security of properly using this technology. We recognize that education is key, and we formalized the Kanoo innovation hub specifically charged with driving education, working with the community, incubating ideas, and also providing other opportunities for investment, business planning, and access to technology programs through the innovation hub.”
