PalmPay, a leading fintech company fostering financial inclusion in Nigeria through technology, has called for improvement in the security and safety of fintech apps to address the upsurge in fraud cases in Nigeria’s financial services sector.
At the third Africa Tech Alliance Forum (AfriTECH) on Wednesday, November 8, in Lagos, Temitayo Oduwole, Head of IT and Payments, PalmPay, emphasized the critical importance of prioritizing app security and safety in the fintech ecosystem.
Speaking on ‘The Future of Money, Security/Safety, and Customer Experience,’ Oduwole highlighted several features built into the PalmPay app to ensure its over 30 million users transact under a secure and trusted environment.
“For the four years that PalmPay has been in business, we’ve increased our users to over 30 million because of how user-friendly our app is; while also marrying security and safety with customer experience to create a balance.
“We’ve integrated several security and safety features on the PalmPay app to protect our users from fraud, such as binding their phone to the app, an auto-logout and biometrics features to confirm our users’ identity,” Oduwole said.
“Also, there is an inbuilt safety feature in the PalmPay app that uses Artificial Intelligence (AI) to understand users’ transaction patterns to cater for incidents of fake accounts, fraud, cyberattacks, to ensure account protection.
“PalmPay employs a closed-loop risk management system that involves continuous monitoring, analysis, and response to security threats. It allows us to detect and prevent risks in real time, reducing the potential impact of security incidents.
“We also run a Wallet Safety Workshop to educate our users on how to safeguard their wallets and apply safety tips to limit incidents of financial fraud,” the official added.
A highlight of the event was the award of the 2023 Africa Tech Alliance Excellence (ATAEX) Awards for ‘Fastest Growing Fintech of the Year’ to PalmPay for the fintech company’s “excellence and innovation in the use of IT in financial services.”
Attendees at the event included industry regulators and stakeholders from the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC); the Nigeria Computer Society (NCS); Association of Licensed Telecoms Operators of Nigeria (ALTON).
Others were the Association of Telecommunications Companies of Nigeria (ATCON); Information Technology Association of Nigeria (ITAN); InnovationBed Africa; and Institute of Software Practitioners of Nigeria (ISPON), amongst others.
PalmPay is a leading Africa-focused fintech platform committed to driving economic empowerment in Africa. Through its secure, user-friendly, and inclusive suite of financial services, PalmPay brings top-tier products into the pockets of everyday Nigerians.
PalmPay offers money transfers, bill payments, credit services, and savings on its app and via its mobile money agents.
Since launching in Nigeria in 2019 under a Mobile Money Operator license, the platform has grown to 30 million users, and 1.1 million businesses, including 600,000 merchants and 500,000 agents, are part of its cashless payment ecosystem.
The company has disclosed USD 140m of funding. The PalmPay app is available on Google Play Store and iOS App Store in Nigeria and Ghana, with more markets going live in 2023.
