By: Christine Wu
African innovation has always been born of necessity, resilience, and boundless creativity. Over decades, a confluence of geopolitical challenges and economic constraints has shaped a unique approach to problem-solving on the continent—one that thrives not despite these limitations but because of them.
It has resulted in a sense of purposeful ingenuity—a deliberate act of solving challenges with creativity, resourcefulness, and a clear intent to create meaningful, lasting impact. Innovation, in this regard, is guided by a sense of purpose, aimed at addressing the continent’s unique challenges while unlocking its vast potential.
This ethos is particularly evident in Africa’s banking sector, where innovation is deeply human, grounded in understanding the lived realities of those it serves. By harnessing technology with purpose, financial services have bridged gaps and, in some cases, leapfrogged traditional systems in developed markets, creating unparalleled accessibility and convenience for millions of people.
Almost half of adults in Sub-Saharan Africa own a bank account—more than double the figure in 2011—while 33% hold a mobile money account, a rate that has nearly tripled since 2014. Such momentum is mirrored in South Africa, where recent data from Absa shows that two-thirds of surveyed consumers expect to increase their digital spending by 30-50% within the next two years, driven predominantly by the growing use of mobile channels. More than half the bank’s customers already log in over 20 times a month to access finance, pay utilities and bills, manage accounts, and send money—underscoring the growing reliance on digital platforms as critical enablers of seamless and efficient financial interactions in modern African economies.
What’s crucial to note here is that this momentum is not accidental; it is the result of intentional design, investment, and collaboration. Purposeful ingenuity means that financial service providers are not just building for the present; they are anticipating future trends, such as the increasing demand for seamless digital experiences, and embedding resilience and scalability into their solutions.
But, while customers may value the efficiency of swift transactions and prompt resolutions, they often miss the sense of understanding and personal care that automated systems struggle to provide. Purposeful ingenuity demands that institutions then recognise and mitigate this risk by embedding human understanding into technological innovation.
Here, technology may again offer a solution.
The integration of generative AI and predictive analytics within digital channels and frontline operations represents a critical frontier in advancing customer engagement. These technologies, when implemented thoughtfully, can anticipate needs, resolve issues pre-emptively, and create experiences that feel attuned to individual customer contexts. At Absa, for instance, over 70% of chatbot interactions are resolved without escalation to a human agent. The integration of sophisticated AI models into our cross-selling journeys ensures that recommendations are relevant to customers at the moment.
The future of customer experience will likely involve deeper collaboration between digital systems and human agents, with AI handling routine interactions and people stepping in when empathy and judgment are paramount.
This collaborative approach lays the groundwork for leveraging advanced technologies to break down barriers and extend meaningful financial access to underserved populations.
With the growing adoption of digital customer journeys, financial institutions have a unique opportunity to integrate educational resources, empowering customers with knowledge on managing credit risks, building safety nets for unforeseen challenges, and fostering a sustainable savings culture— foundational skills that can drive the creation of intergenerational wealth. Consumers thirst for financial knowledge in easily digestible formats. Absa launched Credit Coach, an app-based personal credit educational tool in 2024 and within the first month of launch, we created one million interactions, reflecting the strong customer interest.
This means that the widespread adoption of digital features must evolve into the strategic and purposeful deployment of technology to generate meaningful incremental value for both customers and the financial services industry.
At its core, this approach ensures that every innovation, investment, or collaboration is deeply aligned with the realities and aspirations of Africa’s people. It means prioritising solutions that are not only technologically advanced but also culturally attuned, scalable, and capable of addressing systemic inequities.
* Wu is the chief executive for Everyday Banking at Absa Group.
PERSONAL FINANCE