DonRiver Inc., a leading mobile financial services strategy and technology consulting firm and hosts of the 3rd Annual Mobile Money Canada Conference announced that Michael Joseph, former CEO of Safaricom and founder of Kenya’s mobile money service M–Pesa, will deliver two keynote sessions on September 27, 2011 at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre in Toronto, Canada.

Mobile Money Canada 2011 will feature the leading experts in the mobile money field and showcase the most successful mobile money companies and services from around the world; including Michael Joseph’s leadership tenure with Safaricom and its wildly successful mobile payment initiative – M–Pesa.

“Michael Joseph is a leading pioneer within the Mobile Money industry,” said Brent Ho–Young, Managing Director, Mobile Practice, DonRiver Inc. “We are thrilled to welcome Michael to Mobile Money Canada 2011. We look forward to providing Mobile Money professionals with the first ever opportunity in Canada to meet, network with, and learn from Michael’s unique Mobile Money insights and experiences.”

During Michael Joseph’s tenure as CEO of Safaricom, he steered the company from a subscriber base of less than 20,000 to over 16.71 million subscribers. This phenomenal growth straddling nearly a decade was motored by the launch of many innovative products and services such as M–PESA. Michael received individual recognition for making the most outstanding contribution to mobile money through Safaricom’s M–PESA at the MMT Global Awards, held in October 2010 in Dubai.

In November 2010, Michael retired as Safaricom’s CEO and took up a new role as Strategic Advisor to Vodafone, Safaricom and The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Currently, he is a member of the Safaricom Board and other Vodafone affiliates. He is also a World Bank Fellow appointed March 2011 to advise Governments, Regulators and other institutions on Mobile Money and other ICT initiatives.

Mobile Payments Pioneer to Deliver Keynote
At Mobile Money Canada 2011 Michael Joseph shall share what it takes to build a compelling mobile money proposition for commercial success in Canada and abroad over the course of two keynote presentations:

1. Morning Session: Spearheading M–Pesa – The Most Successful Deployment of Mobile Financial Services to–date, as per Bill Gates!
2. Afternoon Session: M–Pesa Case Study – Strategic Partnerships, Business Models, Regulatory Assessments & Go–To–Market Strategies

Mobile Money Tracks & Industry Speakers
In addition to Michael Joseph, the conference will feature sessions that will explore mobile money trends and opportunities, mobile banking and mobile payments. Industry executives and thought leaders who are confirmed to speak within each of those tracks include:

1. CIBC Retail & Business Banking: Steve Tyers, VP of eChannels Strategy
2. Roshan (M-Paisa): Karim Khoja, CEO
3. Royal Bank of Canada: Sharad Ojha, Head of Mobile Channel Strategy
4. Visa Inc: Deker Colfer, Business Leader, Global Mobile Product Innovation
5. BOKU Inc: Wellington Sculley, VP Business Development
6. CIBC Retail & Business Banking: Jimmy Dinh, Senior Director, eChannels Strategy
7. DonRiver Inc: Brent Ho-Young, Managing Director, Mobile Financial Services Consulting Practice
8. Kony Solutions: David Eads, VP Product Marketing
9. Telepin Software: Vince Kadar, President

CIBC, Visa & RBC to headline Mobile Banking track
Join Sharad Ojha, Head of Mobile Channel Strategy at RBC, and Steve Tyers, VP of eChannels Strategy at CIBC Retail & Business Banking, as they share their own experiences and perspectives on how best to approach a rapidly changing and growing channel to deliver better customer services, retain market share and protect or enhance revenues.

For more information on Mobile Money Canada 2011, including details on how to attend, speak or sponsor, please visit www.MobileMoneyCanada.com and/or contact the conference lead at Anant.Tailor@DonRiver.com.