As businesses navigate rapid technological change, working together is becoming increasingly important in shaping how companies innovate, scale, and stay competitive.

That’s the thinking behind Absa Group’s new partnership with Innovation City Cape Town, a move focused on connecting with founders, fintechs, and the broader technology ecosystem to better understand how businesses are evolving and where future growth opportunities are emerging.

We spoke to Tamu Dutuma, Head of Strategy and Transformation for Technology, Africa Regions, about the partnership and why collaboration is becoming an increasingly important part of business strategy.

What made Innovation City the right environment for Absa to partner with at this point?

At the core of Absa’s strategy is our customers. This means being customer-obsessed in all we do and innovating around customer solutions becomes critical. Innovation requires that we are focused on transforming our technology capabilities and we recognise that this does not happen in isolation. Partnerships and engaging with the broader ecosystem is central to achieving our goals.

Innovation City provides the right environment for those connections to happen. It brings together founders, fintechs, investors, and industry leaders who are actively shaping the future of business and technology. Through this partnership, we can engage more closely with emerging businesses, gain insights into evolving market needs, and explore opportunities to collaborate.

How does technology fit into Absa’s broader strategy for long-term, customer-led growth?

Technology is central to enabling customer-led growth at Absa. As customer expectations continue to evolve, it is important that our technology strategy remains closely aligned to those needs.

This requires a strong focus on scalability and adaptability. While speed to market remains important, we are increasingly prioritising the need to build strong technology foundations that can support long-term growth and flexibility, at the right cost-to-serve. Removing technology barriers to innovation will ultimately unlock value for our customers.

What kinds of conversations are you hoping to have with founders inside Innovation City?

We want to gain greater exposure to what is emerging across the ecosystem, from innovation and digital transformation to AI and the broader shifts shaping the future of technology across industries.

We also see this as an opportunity to better understand the challenges founders are navigating and to explore where closer engagement across the ecosystem can create mutual value.

What has your early experience been like engaging through Innovation City’s events?

Through Innovation City’s events programme, Absa will engage as part of our broader focus on structured learning and ecosystem exposure. It is critical to understand the communities we operate in and this enables us to be customer-led.

We recently attended our first event under this collaboration, the Startup of the Year competition which took place on the 14th of May. It provided exposure to emerging startups and innovation trends and offered insight into how early-stage businesses are building and scaling solutions. The event also highlighted the level of innovation in the ecosystem, particularly how startups are translating ideas into practical solutions that address real challenges faced by customers, businesses, and communities. Many of the finalists demonstrated how technology is being applied in practical and thoughtful ways to scale impact and improve reach and financial inclusion.

We are now looking forward to the Women in Tech-focused Digital Divas Summit in August, which aligns closely with our commitment to diversity, inclusion, and broader participation in the technology sector.

What are the key priorities for Absa as you continue to evolve your technology and innovation strategy?

Our priorities are centred on strengthening the technology foundations that enable long-term, customer-led growth. This includes accelerating our digital transformation journey through modernising our technology landscape, building more scalable, resilient, and flexible platforms, whilst following an API-first approach to our architecture that seeks to enhance our ability to partner.

We are also focused on reducing legacy complexity, strengthening cybersecurity, and exploring how AI can enhance customer experiences and improve decision-making. Alongside this, we are advancing more mobile-first solutions and investing in digital skills to support growth across the broader digital economy.

A key priority is also deepening our engagement across the ecosystem. We see collaboration as essential to how we learn, adapt, and scale – ensuring our technology strategy remains responsive to evolving customer and market needs.

***

As Innovation City continues to bring together founders, corporates, investors, and operators, partnerships like this signal a broader shift across the ecosystem – one where collaboration is no longer optional, but essential to how businesses learn, innovate, and grow.

For Absa, it reflects a deliberate move toward deeper ecosystem engagement, while for founders, it opens up new opportunities to connect, test ideas, and build alongside one of South Africa’s leading financial institutions.