stmI came across a question that was asked on Nairaland a few days ago, regarding business ideas that needs funding. I was so interested in this that I took time to go through lots of comments on that post.
One of the things that struck me was that out of all the comments, not one business idea has anything to do with the booming Financial technology industry in Nigeria. Which brings me to my question, “why are Nigerian youths not investing heavily in the Fintech industry?”
The Profitability Of The Financial Technology Industry
During the last Big Brother Naija edition (Season 6: Shine Ya Eye), Abeg App shocked everyone when the company was announced as one of the major sponsors of the popular reality TV show.
Just a few months ago, Paystack (another Fintech startup by two young Nigerians) was reportedly purchased by Stripe for over $200M. Yes, you read that right, $200M!
In just a few years of operation, Patricia App has proven there’s so much to be done and gained in this industry. It currently has offices scattered around Asian, Europe and America, and their customer base keeps growing on a daily basis, with over half a million users presently.
These are just a few Nigerian startups that are currently making waves beyond the African continent. The industry is so unsaturated that there’s still enough space for more. I mean only Nigeria alone has over 200 Million people, out of which a large number performs one financial transaction or the other daily. Think of what happens when your app or startup starts gaining international recognitions.
The good news is that the Fintech industry has several niches in it for everyone. For instance cryptocurrency, local payments processing, international payments processing, foreign exchange, digital banks, Fintech security, micro credits (short and long term lending) etc. Each of these can function effectively as mobile apps on Android and iOS devices, as well as on the web through phone and computer browsers.
Why are we leaving everything for foreigners to create, set their own policies and milk us dry? Especially in the instant lending or micro credits department. A lot of the lending apps causing commotions in our country today are owned by the Chinese. From Opay to Easymoni, Palmcredit, Sokoloan etc. Majority of them are not owned by Nigerians. Our youths are merely working there.
Why are we not creating our own apps in any of these niches and functioning there? Why are we not setting our own policies and partaking of the huge profits in this industry?
Could It Be The Capital Required To Start?
This is often the number 1 reason people say have prevented them from investing in the financial technology industry. But that’s not always the case. In a previous post, I highlighted about 10 global venture capital funding available for Fintech startups in Nigeria and Africa as a whole. You can check it out and see for yourself what you are missing.
For me, I think it’s the problem of knowledge. Not many people know about the opportunities that abound in this industry and how to take advantage of them. This can easily be solved through proper research and awareness programs.
Then there’s the issue of government policies, the activities of Yahoo boys and so many others.
What’s your take on this?
Would you invest in Fintech in Nigeria if you had the money?
Let’s discuss.
stm