The location was Singapore. The eventConnecTech Asia. The venue: Marina Bay Sands. The year: June 2018.
GIFT Co-founder and Chairman, Malik Khan Kotadia
After an enriching panel discussion, the four panellists - Jeff Frey from Switzerland, Simon Wilson from Australia, Bettina Quimson from the Philippines and Sebastian Resano from Argentina, along with the moderator-Malik Khan Kotadia, sat together for dinner over the bay. Amidst the gentle breeze and the sights of the evening Singapore skyline, they brainstormed ways to continue the ‘dialogue’ and leverage this global expertise. Thus came about the idea of the Global Impact FinTech (GIFT) Forum, a platform to bring together key stakeholders in the Fintech ecosystem for inclusion and impact. This initiative has been recognized as being an “industry legend” by PCN in June 2020.
Global Impact Fintech Forum GIFTs Charter Global Impact FinTech (GIFT) claims to be the most diverse and inclusive FinTech forum globally, with members from 40+ countries across all regions. As a global nonprofit think tank, incorporated and headquartered in Singapore, GIFT’s goal is to work with varied stakeholders to help collectively find solutions to humanity’s critical challenges by leveraging disruptive tech, with a primary focus on innovation for impact and inclusion. The members include ecosystem leaders from Governments, Regulators, Multilateral Agencies, Industry, Banks, Fintech and Blockchain companies, Academia and thought leaders. GIFT Forum engages with policymakers and Fintech/Blockchain/Digital leaders for knowledge and best practice sharing, community building, collaboration, and ecosystem development. Talking to co-founder and Chairman Malik Khan Kotadia, we are certainly curious to find out more about GIFT.
10
Q: “Looking back at that dinner in Singapore, how would you describe the subsequent ride?” A: “Even though our aim has always been to bring together thought leaders on a global scale, it isn’t a coincidence that our initiative has seen maximum traction in Asia so far, given the presence of emerging markets, where FinTech has the potential to be a game-changer in people’s lives. To facilitate inclusion is a key objective for us, especially post-pandemic. And in this regard, we want to ‘walk the talk’ - Malik. At the same time, as a non-profit forum, we work on GIFT in our spare time, driven by a joint vision: ‘to be the world’s most diverse, inclusive and impactful Fintech community, for thought leadership and ecosystem development’. It is incredibly inspiring and rewarding to engage with passionate FinTech professionals all over the globe, towards this shared vision and mission.
