The “Future Forward 3.0” edition of the Zenith Bank Tech Fair, hosted at the Eko Convention Centre, Eko Hotels & Suites, Victoria Island, Lagos on November 23-24, 2023, has successfully concluded, showcasing groundbreaking innovations and awarding prizes to exceptional talents.
In the Zenith Hackathon (Zecathon), InfoStride News reports that the winning team, Sync, a platform for team collaboration and workflow management, secured the grand prize of N20 million. The reward also includes a mentorship program with Seedstars, an organization dedicated to supporting entrepreneurs in emerging markets.
The first runner-up, Skill Up With Kahdsole (SUWK), a social-tech startup focusing on providing a comprehensive platform for learning technical and vocational skills, was awarded N15 million and a mentorship program with Seedstars. Tribapay, the second runner-up, a payment processing gateway facilitating cross-border payments and transactions in Nigeria and Ghana, received N10 million and a mentorship program with Seedstars.

Other noteworthy finalists, each receiving N2 million, include Edupoint, Joovlin, Frootify, Izesan Limited, Natal Cares, Plychain.io, and Niteon.
During the Zenith Bank flagship Tech Fair, Dr. Ebenezer Onyeagwu, the Group Managing Director/CEO of Zenith Bank Plc, expressed enthusiasm for the Hackathon, highlighting its significance as the pinnacle of the overall event. He noted that the innovative ideas presented by the youth showcased immense creativity and talent.
The two-day Tech Fair garnered acclaim from participants, featuring presentations on cutting-edge technological innovations spanning Artificial Intelligence, Contactless Payments, Cybersecurity, Cloud Computing, FinTech, Data Analytics, Financial Intelligence, and communication technologies. Chris Lu, a renowned IT Specialist and Managing Director for Huawei Technologies, Nigeria, delivered the keynote address on “Artificial Intelligence – Application & Bias.”
Eminent IT practitioners from global brands, including Demola Sanusi (Amazon Web Services), Temitope Aladenusi (Deloitte), Andrew Uaboi (Visa West Africa), Dr. Blaise Ijebor (CBN), Keelan Singh (UiPath EMEA Banking and Financial Services), Shweta Juneja (McKinsey Digital), Wole Odeleye (Microsoft), Ope Ajayi (Cinemax), and Elo Umeh, enriched the event with their insights.
Two panel sessions added depth to the discussions. The first panel, moderated by Chris Lu, explored “The next frontier: Digital Wallets, Contactless payments and BNPL (Buy Now Pay Later),” featuring discussants Fey Wong (Palmpay), Premier Oiwoh (NIBSS), Vincent Ogbunude (Verve), Ebehijie Momoh (MasterCard), and Adelola Agbebiyi (Network International).
The second panel, hosted by John Obidi, delved into “The intersection of Fintech, eCommerce and SMEs – Collaboration for growth.” Panelists included Prince Nnamdi Ekeh (Konga), Tunde Kehinde (Lydia), Stan Martins (Meta), John Obaro (SystemSpecs), and Seyi Banigbe (Bland2Glam).
In summary, the Zenith Bank Tech Fair’s “Future Forward 3.0” edition celebrated innovation, showcased emerging talents, and provided a platform for insightful discussions on the evolving landscape of technology, finance, and entrepreneurship. InfoStride News captures the highlights of this dynamic event that promises to shape the future of technology in Nigeria and beyond.
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