Interswitch, the largest integrated payments and digital commerce firm in Africa, recently held the Interswitch Ball event at the Eko Convention Center in Victoria Island, Lagos, to cap off its 20th anniversary celebrations.
The event featured entertaining speeches and attracted high-ranking government officials, representatives from the financial services industry, business leaders, clients, and other well-wishers.
In order to add pomp and ceremony to the celebrations, members of the Interswitch Board of Directors, led by Board Chairman and Lord Lieutenant of Greater London, Sir Ken Olisa OBE, were also present.
The Vice President of Nigeria, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, praised the payment business for its crucial contribution to the development and growth of Nigeria’s payment system over the past 20 years in his goodwill message, which was televised during the ceremony.
In reference to Interswitch, he said: “It’s incredible that what began as a noble idea, has in barely two decades, become something of an icon of technology and innovation, literally pioneering Africa’s ongoing fintech revolution.”
The governor of Edo state, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, who attended the celebration of the milestone, congratulated Interswitch on reaching the milestone and praised the company for being a shining example of what can be accomplished in Nigeria.
The anniversary celebrations, which began in August 2022 with the launch of a campaign with the slogan “Never Stop,” have highlighted Interswitch’s groundbreaking achievements in the digital payment ecosystem, designing products and solutions that have, for 20 years, continued to drive prosperity across Africa.
The theme “Never Stop” has been present throughout all of the Group’s endeavors, from Interswitch Connect, which saw the introduction of cutting-edge technological solutions, to the release of the Payment Innovation Jury report and the commemorative editions of VerveLife and the InterswitchSPAK National Science Competition.
Mitchell Elegbe, Interswitch’s founder and group managing director, provided more details about the company’s 20-year history and future prospects.
He said: “Two decades ago, we wondered what singular problem we could solve that would automatically solve other problems by extension. We identified the payments problem and set out to solve it, making a bold move to make commerce easy and trade blossom naturally by eliminating the mystery associated with cash, and the stigma associated with not having it.”
