The FIGI Symposia were held on an annual basis over 2017-2020 to provide a forum for dialogue regulators from telecom and financial services, DFS providers and all concerned stakeholders to share their experience and views on the main challenges to be addressed for scaling up Digital financial services (DFS). To date, FIGI has held three annual Symposia: the first (2017) FIGI Symposium took place between November 29th, 2017 – December 1st , 2017 in Bangalore, India; and the second (2019) FIGI Symposium took place between January 21st–24th in Cairo, Egypt, and a fully virtual event from 18 May-24 June 2021.
The main objectives of the Symposia are to:
- provide a unique platform for regulators, policymakers and DFS experts to share lessons learned about the different digital financial models and services, the regulatory sandbox approach, ways to mitigate risks in fast changing ICT and digital payment environments, and the impact of emerging technologies on the ecosystem;
- showcase digital financial inclusion initiatives and innovations taking place at the international level; and
- provide thought leadership on digital financial inclusion strategies and technological innovations in the area of DFS.
The event brings together telecom/ICT and financial regulators, policymakers, digital financial services providers, payment system organizations and other DFS stakeholders from around the world.
FIGI Symposium 2017
The first edition of the FIGI Symposium (FIGI Symposium 2017) was held in Bangalore, India, from November 29, 2017- December 1, 2017. The Symposium was organized jointly by the Telecommunication Standardization Bureau (TSB) of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, along with the World Bank, the Committee on Payments and Market Infrastructure (CPMI) and the Government of India.
FIGI Symposium 2019
The second edition of the Financial Inclusion Global Initiative (FIGI) Symposium took place between January 21st–24th in Cairo, Egypt. The FIGI Symposium 2019 was organized by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), jointly with the World Bank Group (WBG) and the Committee on Payments and Market Infrastructures (CPMI), with the support of Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF) and was hosted by the National Telecommunication Regulatory Authority (NTRA) of Egypt.
The FIGI Symposium brought together telecom/ICT and financial regulators, policymakers, financial services providers, payment system organizations and other digital financial services (DFS) stakeholders from around the world to discuss innovative solutions and knowledge to enhance digital financial services and ultimately financial inclusion globally.
The Symposium hosted a FIGI Hackathon, challenging innovators to develop electronic payment applications attractive to small-scale merchants and their customers. After 350 developers applied to the competition, 3 teams walked away with prizes to continue developing their electronic payment application (learn more about the winners of the FIGI Hackathon).
In addition, the Symposium featured relevant financial inclusion topics and learnings from the FIGI Working Groups and FIGI Country Implementations, as well as a range of panel sessions on financial inclusion and digital financial services and capacity building sessions including a cybersecurity simulation exercise for policymakers.
For more Information, be sure to check the 2019 FIGI Symposium Digital Media Kit, Expert Interviews, and Symposium presentations.
FIGI Symposium 2021
The third edition of FIGI Symposium was held as a fully virtual event from 18 May to 24 June 2021. The Symposium topics included financial technology (fintech) for inclusion, gender equity, consumer protection, cybersecurity and trust, digital identity, payment acceptance, and experiences reaching underserved and vulnerable populations during the COVID-19 pandemic. All session recordings are available on from our programme webpage.
