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The first “Doing Digital Forum – Exploring Digital Future” will be held in Yerevan on 5 April to study the current trends and best practices around the digitization process in Armenia and globally, discuss failures and challenges, and outline solutions. The Doing Digital Forum’s founder and organizer is SPRING PR Company, co-organizer - Ameriabank.
Ahead of the forum, NEWS.am Tech organized a series of interviews with the speakers of the forum. We had an interesting talk with Dylan Kaloo, Director of Visa Crypto for CEMEA.
How do you define digital transformation, and why do you think it's crucial for businesses and various industries today?
Digital transformation fundamentally translates into a change of a mindset and strategy, relevant legislation and regulations, business culture and education, all adjusted to the readiness for a swift switch to going digital. Additionally, digital transformation requires new business models, solutions, and products, and it involves the relevant backbone hardware and software infrastructure development: from data centers and clouds to proper tools and skills. We also should speak about digital literacy of the society and penetration of digital services. All in all, digital transformation is no longer the future any modern market, government, or institution should be aspiring to achieve – it is our today. But we just have some markets that move faster, and some – much slower. But all have the same destination point.
One of the most crucial parts of this journey is cashless and paperless economy, indeed, which keeps developing in almost every part of the world, correlating with legislation, education, business products, technologies, and relevant infrastructure. Visa not only envisions the digitally transformed future but also remains an enabler of cashless economy advancement via being the best way to pay and be paid, uplifting everyone everywhere.
Speaking of digital payments, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that the COVID-19 pandemic reshaped the world economy and made businesses across the globe realize that going digital is not a need but a must. 90 percent of SMBs surveyed by Visa worldwide reported that online presence had ensured their survival through the pandemic . But even after the worst years of the pandemic are over, customers do not intend to quit their digital habits and prefer easy online shopping and electronic payments to face-to-face communication and carrying cash in their wallets. Ensuring the best customer experience, improving business efficiency, and saving costs, digital transformation benefits businesses across all industries now and will benefit tomorrow.
What are some of the most significant trends or technologies driving digital transformation now and outlined in the future?
I would rather focus on trends in digital payments, that drive digital transformation of not only business, but also e-services by governments, creators and even a civic sector. So, we are speaking about digital wallets and how people make payments now using smartphones, watches, and other gadgets. Moreover, these new methods of payments, as well as tokenization and biometrics also make digital payments in electronic commerce simpler, faster, and more secure.
Second, I would mention fast money movement and real time payments that are required by both business and consumers. Our Visa Direct platform serves as foundation for many solutions and products.
Another trend is that finances become embedded services provided by banks and fintechs and supported by Visa. There’s growing demand from merchants and service providers for financial services and payments being part of their offers to customers. We should also mention customization of marketing bases on big data models tracked in real time. But we also speak about digitalization of public and government services, when digital payments are embedded into e-services ecosystems and so called “super apps”.
Speaking about “super apps” we move forward to metaverses, digital assets like NFT, and digital currencies based on blockchain technology. And Visa partners with many market players to bring its competences and decades of experience, to develop accessible and secure payments. And of course, another important trend is related to security and safety of payments, as this is one of the fundamental aspects that Visa is focusing on. Visa invested around USD 9 billion within last five years to technologies helping is to fight fraud and involved AI (artificial intelligence) to track thousands of parameters to fight fraudsters.
What advice would you give to entities just embarking on their digital transformation journey?
Foremost, I would like to highlight that any entity, whether we speak about small business, big company or any other organization, needs having a very clear and definitive digital transformation strategy, that has to be connected with the core of each business activity. Any entity needs to define the human, financial, and tech resources they require for running enterprises. Thus, knowing how to utilize and embrace digital payments and get the most out of them is a must for digital transformation.
The future is now: latest findings show 41 percent of consumers plan to shift to using only digital payments within the next two years or are already cashless . Hence, the main guiding light in the digital transformation journey must be the customer. Knowing them, and knowing what to do to enhance their experience is vital. I believe small and medium-sized businesses should expand their digital acceptance by providing access to digital payments through POS terminals based on Visa tap-to-phone technology.
What main topics will you discuss in frames of DDF?
During the forum, I will be honored to speak about the future of money, digital currencies and what businesses should know about these trends. I will discuss on how payments can be faster and more reliable and how to provide a seamless experience by connecting traditional payment cards, financial institutions, and businesses with crypto players on the market. I will also guide the audience through Visa’s vision of how money can be based on new technologies and innovations. There are three main directions of digital currencies that I am intending to examine during my session: cryptocurrencies, stablecoins, and Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs). We all at the very early phase of these new technologies, but definitely they will be impacting many sectors in the future.
What benefits can participants expect to gain from attending the forum?
I believe the forum represents an excellent opportunity for everyone eager to learn more about the global digital transformation agenda and dive deeper into how banking, tech, fintech, and crypto ecosystems are developing and shaping the future worldwide. Behind any digital transformation agenda, there are people who have a vision that is transformed into a strategy and later executed. That being the case, I am confident that Doing Digital Forum will be one of the prominent events on the market, leaving a significant mark on the industry’s further growth in Armenia, with Visa playing a crucial role in this process. I also believe that the event will provide an excellent possibility for networking, enabling various field representatives to connect, exchange the experience, and establish ties for future collaborations.
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The event’s innovation partner is Visa, blockchain partner is Fastex, and investment partner - Apricot Capital.
20 top speakers from Armenian and international entities, such as Singapore University of Social Sciences, McKinsey, Forbes, Visa, Hexens, FAST Foundation, Revytech, Fastex, Beta Financial Technologies, Apricot Capital, ICDT Global, as well as RA Government, Central Bank of Armenia, Information Systems Agency of Armenia, SPRING PR Company and Ameriabank, will share their insights on digital business and technology through keynote speeches, panel discussions, and visionary speeches.
The upcoming event will focus on how digital transformation fosters business growth and innovation. Participants will explore strategies for adopting new technologies, gaining a competitive edge, and best practices for data protection and cyber security risk management. The forum's esteemed speakers and panelists will also delve into the latest trends in cryptocurrencies, the Metaverse, and NFTs, examining their potential benefits and associated risks.
The event is open to all interested in digital transformation, including business leaders, IT professionals, entrepreneurs, startups, investors, government officials, PR, marketing, and sales executives.
Other interviews of the series:
To stay competitive digital transformation of companies has no alternative: Hovhannes Toroyan
Investing from anywhere, anytime has become a crucial digital transformation trend: Vachik Gevorgyan
Media and Journalism are epicenters of Digital Disruption in Modern Times
