On Wednesday morning, Her Majesty Queen Máxima was the keynote speaker at the Fintech event in Colombia, promoting greater financial inclusion. The member of the Royal Family of the Kingdom of the Netherlands met with the President of Colombia on Tuesday, and on Wednesday, she addressed the country’s financial sector.
Queen Máxima mentioned that it has been precisely 10 years since her last visit to Colombia. At that time, only 30% of the population had access to a bank account, with the majority paying all their debts in cash and thus having no access to banking benefits. However, she expressed satisfaction that now, a decade later, 60% of the population has a bank account.
The Dutch Monarch ensured that the United Nations promoted greater financial inclusion to provide citizens with more options. Payment through digital platforms comes with numerous benefits. More importantly, it globally demonstrates that having a bank account encourages saving. Citizens who pay for everything in cash tend to spend all their money and lack access to banking for savings.
Queen Máxima appealed to the banking sector to give “the little man” a chance to access an account to enjoy all the benefits and conveniences that digital payment brings. Apart from efficiency, digital payment also promotes more medical options, which are often crucial for vulnerable groups.
The event took place in Bogota at Hotel Salvio, organized by Colombia Fintech. Queen Máxima is on a three-day visit to Colombia as a representative of the United Nations, focusing on the theme of “Financial Inclusion.” This essentially means systems where everyone has access to tools for proper development in financial, personal, and business fields.
Queen Máxima’s speech focused on payment methods to achieve financial inclusion. It is noteworthy that a delegation from the Aruba Tourism Authority (A.T.A.) and the Airport (AAA) was present at this forum. Representing Aruba were Jordan Schlipken-Croes (Aruba Tourism Authority, Director Latin America), Ronella Croes (Aruba Tourism Authority, CEO), Sanju Luidens (Aruba Tourism Authority, CMO.), and Jo-Anne Arends (Aruba Airport Authority, Business Development).
It should be mentioned that upon her departure, the Dutch Monarch met with the delegation from the Aruba Tourism Authority and Aruba Airport Authority present on the occasion. She saw the flag of Aruba and immediately greeted them, not missing the chance to send greetings to the people of Aruba. She shook hands with Ronella Croes and sent greetings to our island, demonstrating her loyalty and love for our island.
About H.M. Queen Máxima:
Queen Máxima (52) was born as Máxima Zorreguieta in Buenos Aires on May 17, 1971. Today, she is the Queen of the Netherlands after marrying His Majesty King Willem-Alexander. She is one of four daughters in a royal family born in Latin America. They are Josephine de Beauharnais of France born in Martinique, Queen Maria II of Portugal, born in Brazil, and Maria Teresa of Luxembourg, of Cuban origin. She has been in office since April 30, 2013, exactly 10 years now. Máxima studied and holds a degree in economics with a master’s degree in economics from the United States. She worked for HSBC Bank in New York, where she rose to the position of vice president. She also worked at Deutsche Bank in Belgium in 2000. Working in New York in 1999, she met SAR Prince Willem-Alexander. On March 30, 2001, she became engaged to the Prince, and in February 2002, they were married. From their marriage, three daughters were born, Princess Amalia, born on December 7, 2003, Princess Alexia, born on June 26, 2005, and Princess Ariane, born on April 10, 2007.
