Mobile payment operators push for financial, economic inclusion

The Chairman, Association of Licensed Mobile Payment Operators (ALMPO), Jay Alabraba, has restated the commitment of the group to drive financial and economic inclusion in the country.

Reacting to his selection to join the Aspen Institute’s Finance Leaders Fellowship, Alabraba, who is the co-founder of Paga, the pioneering mobile money operator, promised to leverage the platform to drive agenda around both financial and economic inclusion.

He will join a diverse class of leaders from across the global finance industry.

“I am honoured to join The Aspen Institute through Class V of the Finance Leaders Fellowship and very excited to help advance the work of the Aspen Global Leadership Network. The focus of the fellowship aligns superbly with my personal values, and I will leverage the platform to drive agenda items around both financial and economic inclusion,” he said.

Executive Director at Aspen Institute’s Finance Leaders Fellowship, Kara Gustafson, said Alabraba was joining the institute at a watershed moment for economies across the globe.

“The pandemic has catalysed a decisive shift in the way businesses consider the stakeholders they serve, the communities they impact, and the workforces they aspire to engage. I congratulate Jay and the other members of his class of outstanding leaders who have the belief, talent, and resilience needed to positively reshape the future of the industry at an inflection point that demands values-driven leadership,” he said.

ALMPO is the umbrella body for Mobile Money Operators (MMOs) licensed by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). The association was established in 2012 to act as a collective of the licensed mobile payment companies, and to deliver on the national mandate of deepening the payments infrastructure and financial inclusion in Nigeria.

ALMPO has more than 20 member institutions serving over 100 million customers across Nigeria. Alabraba emerged chairman of ALMPO last year and leads the executive committee.

The Finance Leaders Fellowship was founded in 2016 by Aspen Institute Henry Crown Fellow, Ranji Nagaswami, and Aspen Institute Trustee, Chris Varelas, coming out of the 2008 financial crisis and the critical need to rebuild trust between the industry and society.

The fellowship’s focus is on developing a community of high-integrity leaders in the global finance industry, now with 105 Fellows across 20 countries. Using the Aspen Institute method of text-based dialogue and building upon the institute’s commitment to values-based, action-oriented.