FutureLink Technologies has been named Platinum winner of Product Innovation of the Year at the 2022 Global SME Finance Forum Awards. This is the first time an African company wins this highest award in the category, attesting to the rise of industry changing innovations on the continent.
While receiving the award on September 20th, Vincent Tumwijukye, Co-Founder and CEO said; “This award is a testament of how Africa’s organised communities, can collectively work to enhance their financial resilience. By enabling customers to efficiently access, assess and choose the most appropriate and affordable financial services provided by SACCOs, we give them an enduring voice to influence the quality and pricing of services. I dedicate this award to our Partner SACCOs, MFIs, Partners, and the FLT Team that keeps awake to ensure that we have an equitable financial system that serves all”.
Organized by International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, and the SME Finance Forum and endorsed by the G20’s Global Partnership for Financial Inclusion (GPFI), the Global SME Finance Awards celebrate outstanding achievements of financial institutions and fintech companies in delivering exceptional products and services to their SME clients.
Launched in 2018 and now in its fifth year, the Global SME Finance Awards capture the effective and successful practices of financiers, honoring the innovative products and services for SME clients that have achieved impressive results in expanding finance and services to SMEs and the institutions that undertake those efforts.
This year’s competition introduced a new category in partnership with the IFC’s Green Bond Technical Assistance Program (GB-TAP), awarding meritorious institutions with the distinction of Sustainable Bond of the Year. The winning entries represent the growing number of financial institutions that recognize that Green, Social and Sustainability Bonds have a crucial role to play in tackling the ongoing climate crisis, helping FIs achieve their Sustainable Development Goals.
For the second year in a row, entries from IDA and fragile and conflict affected situations are honored for working in some of the most difficult operating environments, both highlighting the needs and challenges of serving SMEs in these areas and illustrating what is possible despite the complexities faced.
Matthew Gamser, CEO of the SME Finance Forum said: “This year has seen the largest field of applicants ever, as we expand to a fifth award category in the important area of greening SME financing. We have more countries, with more financial products and approaches than ever before. It was a tall order for the almost 100 judges, whom we thank profusely for their expert, informed and unbiased judgment about who merited recognition.”
Ugandan enterprises urged to explore regional oil and gas opportunitiesIn this fifth year of the competition, entrants continued to illustrate resilience and innovation across the categories, from the ongoing work of serving SMEs in the SME Finance of the Year category, to the institutions channeling the Responsible Investor Guidelines, the Digital Innovator of the Year, to the creative and holistic approaches in the category of Best Financier for Women Entrepreneurs, which is organized each year in partnership with the IFC Banking on Women Initiative.
Magda Bianco, GPFI co-Chair said, “The G20’s Global Partnership for Financial Inclusion welcomes this latest round of the Global SME Finance Awards, which, along with our new Database on Digital SME Finance Innovations, is helping raise awareness of all the new possibilities that digitalization offers for improving small firm access to finance. I’m very impressed with how many of these SME financing initiatives are taking place in the poorest countries of the world, and in fragile and conflict affected areas. I congratulate all the winners, all the honorable mentions, and all those who applied, and really encourage you to share your great work in our new Database. For a full list of the winners in each category and Honorable Mentions, please go to the Global SME Finance Awards 2022 website.
About FutureLink technologies
FutureLink Technologies also known as FLT, is a Community-driven Marketplace for financial services, that enhances the financial resilience of Africa’s low and middle income earners. By enabling thousands of customers through their MSACCO App, to to daily access varied financial services provided by over 300 SACCOs, and enabling them to choose the most appropriate and affordable options, FLT enables them to influence the design and delivery of financial services. FLT works to democratise Africa’s financial services as a means to build an equitable financial system that works for everyone.
In Uganda, FLT is licensed by the Central Bank of Uganda as a National Payment System Operator. It is also listed among the Inclusive Fintech 50 – a list of world’s top financial technology companies removing barriers to financial access, powered by Center for Financial Inclusion
