SingularityU South Africa: The Inaugural Exponential Finance Summit Gets Even Bigger New speakers have been added to the line-up of the inaugural exponential finance summit programme, bringing together over 20 global thought leaders in technology, finance, and investment.
Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
You're reading Entrepreneur South Africa, an international franchise of Entrepreneur Media.
SingularityU South Africa has announced that more speakers have been added to the programme for the inaugural Exponential Finance Summit, which will take place at the Cape Town International Convention Centre on 29 and 30 May 2019. The new speakers include Shane Glynn, Hylton Kallner, Phathizwe Malinga, Benjamin Rosman and Magda Wierzycka.
Everything you need to know about the new speakers:
Shane Glynn, co-founder and General Counsel of MobileCoin
Shane Glynn is the co-founder and General Counsel of MobileCoin, a company that provides private, mobile and digital cash payment systems. Prior to MobileCoin he worked as a Senior Product Counsel on a variety of projects at Google, including the Pixel phone, Google Fiber and open access national WiFi. Glynn's talk will address privacy in the world of exponential data.
Now that we are all connected, and headed towards a cashless society, Glynn will discuss what are the implications are for business and society at large, and why this is so important for freedom in the future. We are seeing a tremendous rise of cashless and mobile payments from China. The question that needs to be asked is whether the rest of the world will embrace or compete with China.
Hylton Kallner, Chief Executive Officer for Discovery Life
With a BEconSC in Actuarial Science, Hylton Kallner, is currently the Chief Executive Officer for Discovery Life, and oversees the group's Marketing and Distribution.
Additionally, he also plays a key role in the executive committees of Discovery Limited, Discovery Health, Discovery Life, Discovery Invest, Discovery Insure and Discovery Vitality. Also a fellow of the Actuarial Society of South Africa, Kallner will address the convergence between banking and insurance.
Magda Wierzycka, chief executive officer at Sygnia Limited
In her role as chief executive officer at Sygnia Limited, Magda Wierzycka is known for her strong anti-corruption corporate activism in South Africa. She is in high demand as a speaker on the topic of ethical corporate leadership, both domestically and internationally.
Related: Top Fintech Trends Revamping Financial Technology
She also sits on the advisory board of the Centre for African Studies at Harvard University, USA. In her talk at the Exponential Finance Summit, Wierzycka will discuss the road ahead in Asset Management.
Phathizwe Malinga, Managing Director of SqwidNet
Phathizwe Malinga, who recently returned from Silicon Valley, is part of the Singularity University South Africa faculty with a focus on Internet of Things and Big Data. As the Managing Director of SqwidNet, Malinga is responsible for building an Internet of Things (IOT) connectivity business in South Africa in partnership with International IOT giant SIGFOX. In addition to his CEO role, he oversees the solutions division for SqwidNet, a fully-owned subsidiary of Dark Fibre Africa.
In his talk, he will share his expertise related to the Internet of Things within the finance sector.
Benjamin Rosman, principal researcher at the Mobile Intelligent Autonomous Systems group
As a member of the South African Singularity University faculty, Benjamin Rosman specialises in machine learning, artificial intelligence, robotics and automation. He is a principal researcher in the Mobile Intelligent Autonomous Systems group at the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) in South Africa. Rosman is also a senior lecturer in the School of Computer Science and Applied Mathematics at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, where he runs the Robotics, Autonomous Intelligence and Learning Laboratory.
His talk at the Exponential Finance Summit will tackle artificial intelligence and re-enforcement learning.
Who else will be speaking at SingularityU South Africa
These speakers add to the already prestigious slate of presentations boasting world including:
- Renowned cybersecurity expert Jaya Baloo,
- Exonomics and exponential business models expert Amin Toufani,
- Blockchain specialist Tanya Knowles,
- Future of cities expert Geci Karuri-Sebina (PHD),
- Catherine Wood, founder of ARK invest,
- Data science specialist Manu Sharma.
Other headline speakers include Ramez Naam, Kyle Nel, David Roberts, Kirsty Roth, Ashley Anthony, Mic Mann, Shayne Mann, Nathana Sharma, and Paul Pagnatto – one of the top 35 global wealth advisors globally.
This groundbreaking event is the next iteration in SingularityU's journey to #futureproofAfrica, by creating a global community of changemakers, who are able to implement solutions to solve the world's Global Grand Challenges by using exponential technologies.
"As part of our journey in future-proofing Africa, we are thrilled to have added more incredible speakers to the line up for our Exponential Finance Summit. We feel a great sense of pride to be bringing these world class experts and thinking to our South African shores," said Shayne Mann, co-CEO of SingularityU South Africa.
The purpose of the Exponential Finance Summit South Africa
"Through the Exponential Finance Summit, we hope to facilitate meaningful networking connections on a global scale, encourage ideas that can change the financial world, stimulate the South African economy, and kickstart a strong venture capital ecosystem. Impact is the currency of the future and these new speakers promise to add exactly that," said Mic Mann, co-CEO of SingularityU South Africa.
The Summit will showcase how exponential technologies are simultaneously shaping and disrupting the financial industry. It aims to empower attendees with the latest insights on how to boost GDP growth, create employment, and attract foreign direct investment—a key enabler of economic growth that is especially important for emerging market economies.
"Exponential Finance will be a transformative experience for attendees. SingularityU South Africa convenes the world's experts to introduce attendees to exponential technologies and equip them with the mindset and leadership needed to take the finance industry into the future," said Rob Nail, CEO and associate founder of Singularity University. "We expect that these two days will incite and inspire action that will lead to breakthroughs in Africa's economy."
Similar to the annual SingularityU South Africa Summit, Exponential Finance will focus on creating a collaborative and more economically-inclusive future, whereby partnerships and deals can be conceptualised and developed across the continent. Networking opportunities will allow attendees to connect with SingularityU alumni. Exhibitors will present breakthrough ideas and investment opportunities that will run alongside the summit.
Book your tickets now for the inaugural Exponential Finance Summit South Africa
When: 29 – 30 May 2019
Where: Cape Town International Convention Centre, 1 Lower Long Street, Cape Town
Cost: Standard tickets: R18 500, Late mover tickets: R20 350. Tickets limited to 1,000 attendees.
What to bring: An exponential mindset and your networking skills
REGISTER here