Matteo Rizzi
Founder & CEO, Timepledge.org
Matteo Rizzi is an unconventional entrepreneur with two decades of experience in Financial Services, constantly referred amongst the top executives in the industry. He spent 13 years at SWIFT - where he co-founded Innotribe, the innovation arm of the cooperative, launching the first global startup challenge. Since 2013, he has had a FinTech Investor and/or Venture Partner role with global VCs and CVCs (20+ deals, 5 exits). In 2015, he co-founded FinTechStage (FTSGroup.eu) - a platform for Investors and Innovators to boost FinTech innovation globally. In 2019, Matteo founded Timepledge.org a global initiative to foster financial inclusion and entrepreneurship. The same year he launched Breaking Banks Europe (as the Executive Producer) and in 2025 the spin-off Breaking Banks Africa. In 2023, he was appointed Senior Advisor for Elevandi (MAS) now GFTN. He is the author of "The FinTech Revolution" and "Talents & Rebels" and is fluent in 5 languages.
08:40 AM – 09:00 AM SPEECH
Thursday 26 June
SCALING FINANCIAL INCLUSION ACROSS THE MEA REGION
- Intro and short bio, “live”
- 4B are still financially excluded. It s the big last mile, what are the drivers to tackle this?
- investing versus venture building versus accelerating: what works best? What is the best approach for frontier markets in Africa?
- On the continent, there are several velocities when it comes to pushing for innovation and inclusive financial services … what is your experience (since you worked in 17+ different ecosystems in Africa alone?)
- You are taking a very bold approach in the Talent space with your Timepledge initiative. Are we doing enough to retain and upskill talent in Africa?
- GFTN approach to help regulators collaborate and better connect with the innovators and the platforms across the continent.
