High Growth Expected in Mobile Payments & E-Commerce

Yangon, Myanmar, January 8, 2016 (Newswire.com) - ​Myanmar has the full potential of harnessing digital payments and mobile commerce.  The absence of a traditional banking infrastructure in Myanmar makes it prime territory for mobile money operations.  Leveraging on the new telecommunications infrastructure that was recently enhanced, the time is now to seize emerging opportunities of mobile money in the country.  With 94% of the population having no access to tap water and 31% no electricity, mobile money has the potential to drive delivery of basic services and amenities.  In just one year, Myanmar mobile subscribers have registered almost 300% subscriber growth with mobile phone usage approaching 50% of the population, 80% of which are smart phone usage.

The 7th Mobile Money + E-Commerce Summit 2016 will convene on the 28th and 29th of January 2016 in Yangon, Myanmar, bringing together government authorities, industry experts and key private sector partners from in and around Myanmar and the Greater Mekong Subregion to dissect the critical issues, share valuable insights and perspectives, and develop new and practicable solutions to the challenges currently facing these rapidly emerging Asian markets.

Some informative presentations include "Going Cashless: How Myanmar will Make it Happen" by U Aung Aung, Director, Myanmar Citizens Bank; "Analyzing the Mobile Money Landscape in Cambodia" by Loeung Sopheap, Senior Vice President and Head of Product Development at Acleda Bank, Cambodia; and "Mobile Money in Nepal: Emerging Opportunities and Projects" by Jakirul Islam, Resident Consultant of Ncell Nepal and Senior Project Manager at Microsave.

The 7th Summit will also feature 3 panel discussions on the following key themes: "Riding the Momentum of the Mobile Money Revolution"; "Broadening the Adoption and Usage of Mobile Money Services in Financial Inclusion Efforts" and "Empowering Citizens with Convenient & World Class Payment & Billing Solutions".

The event will be attended by key management, operational and IT managers from financial institutions, MFIs, Central Banks and key government departments.

Event partners include ConnectNPay who are the Summit’s Platinum Sponsor, along with exhibitors ModeFinServer, Estel Technologies, and the Software Group.

ConnectNPay's Commercial Director, Richard Buttenshaw, said: "ConnectNPay is delighted to be sponsoring the 7th Mobile Money + E-Commerce Summit for the second year running.  We find it a unique opportunity to meet key players in the mobile payments and ecommerce ecosystems, sharing our products and lessons learned with representatives of organisations from within Myanmar and around the region.  We're looking forward to catching up with our existing partners and making contact with new ones looking to join in the world’s most exciting market."

Amit Darda, COO of Modefinserver, added: "The event is important as it's bringing together the decision makers with potential vendors and service providers.  We see a lot of growth for mobile financials in Myanmar market as most of the country's population is unbanked and existing systems are not able to reach them.  As a company we are specialized in this mobile financial technology and we are sure that this is a perfect event to establish our presence.”

Estel Technologies' Founder & Managing Director, Raj Hajela, said: "We believe that this region will see increasing adoption, tremendous growth and recurrent usage of mobile and electronic commerce as an alternate channel, especially in the areas of money transfer, utility bill payments, prepaid recharge and some other innovative and niche payment areas.  We look forward to visiting the 7th Mobile Money + E-Commerce Summit 2016 event to meet with banks and service providers in the region to exchange ideas, and discuss mutual co-operation and business."

The CEO of the conference-organizing company, Magenta Global Pte Ltd, Singapore, Maggie Tan, added: “Myanmar is coming online faster than anyone predicted.  To harness the full potential of mobile commerce, strong collaboration is required among mobile operators, financial and payments companies, technology companies and government agencies.  We invite all companies in this whole new emerging ecosystem to join this Summit.”

The Summit will be held at the Park Royal Hotel, Yangon.

Contact Jose at +65 6391 2535 or [email protected] for more information.