Rwanda’s CMA Fintech Regulatory Sandbox Gets a New Partner

By techfocus24 

September 19, 2023

The Rwandan Capital Market Authority (CMA) has admitted IT Consortium Rwanda Limited to its Fintech Regulatory Sandbox, Techfocus24 has learnt.

IT Consortium Rwanda Limited becomes the 2nd firm to be admitted in the CMA Fintech Regulatory Sandbox to test their innovations after launching in the Eastern African country in July this year.

A statement from CMA said IT Consortium will be testing its Fintech innovation in a capital markets live environment in compliance with the CMA Fintech Regulatory Sandbox Guidelines.

According to the statement, the company will specifically be testing its Chango for investment Application, a Fintech innovation in the saving and investment space aiming at connecting retail investors to the Collective Investment Schemes (CIS).

Chango seeks to build the culture of saving and investment for retail investors by enabling them to save and invest in CIS individually or through private and public groups who have common investment goals.

“IT Consortium will test its application in the Fintech Regulatory Sandbox for the period of twelve (12) months,” the statement said.

IT Consortium Rwanda is a subsidiary of Ghana’s IT Consortium, which is one of the leading Fintech’s in the country with footprints in Kenya, Zambia and Liberia. In Ghana, the company is the fintech backbone for over 60 organizations including the top banks, all the telcos, utility service providers, academic institutions, insurance companies, other leading fintechs, state institutions, airlines, and more.

Chango is the company’s direct customer-facing crowdfunding product, which is currently being widely used by private and public groups to raise funds for laudable projects.

Going into Rwanda, CEO of IT Consortium, Romeo Bugyei tells Techfocus24 that the aim is to form strategic partnerships, invest in its robust technology infrastructure, promote financial inclusion, and build customer trust across the entire Eastern Africa corridor.”

Outside of Ghana, Liberia is the second fastest-growing market for the company and plans are afoot to launch in Zambia soon.

Rwandan Fintech Regulatory Sandbox

Rwanda’s Capital Market Authority (CMA) has implemented the Fintech Regulatory Sandbox as a framework to encourage and support the promotion of a variety of Fintech innovations that have the potential to deepen and accelerate the capital market development in Rwanda.

CMA continues to implement various initiatives in line with Rwanda’s commitment to become a Fintech hub and a proof of concept for Fintechs by implementing the Capital Markets Fintech Regulatory Sandbox, which is an enabling regulatory environment where Fintechs are able to test their innovative solutions in a small scale and controlled environment before deployment to the wider market.

The CMA’s Manager for Information Technologies and Coordinator for Fintech in Capital Markets Mr. Jerome NDAYAMBAJE, noted: “The Authority is delighted to welcome this new innovation for testing in the Capital Markets Fintech Regulatory Sandbox. If this innovation is successful, it will significantly reduce the barriers to entry into the capital markets for retail investors. The collective investment schemes will be accessible to retail investors in a more convenient manner and the culture of saving and investment will be enhanced by leveraging technology.”