Adeola Ajayi, Savings Manager for Nomba, Shares his Experiences Running one of Nigeria’s biggest fintech companies

Adeola Ajayi, the savings manager at Nomba, speaks in this interview on recent developments in the financial sector and shares his experience leading one of the largest fintech companies in the country.

Adeola Ajayi is an emerging leader in Nigeria’s fintech sector. He has won a number of accolades, including the coveted Migration Entrepreneurship Prize in 2021, Adeola is also a fellow of the Accion Venture Lab.

Adeola started his career as an entrepreneur by starting Schoolphix, an Edtech company, and expanding it to over 50,000 users before exiting to start Toju, a fintech company, where he served as CEO. Adeola was subsequently hired by seasoned angel investor Ike Eze to head the savings division of an inclusive fintech company, AjoCard LTD, where he built the savings business from scratch to bank over 100,000 customers. Due to his growth, he was given the chance to lead the savings business line at Nomba, one of Nigeria’s most valuable fintech companies, where he introduced a savings product that onboarded more than 1 million users.

Adeola devotes his free time to serving as a mentor at Lagos Innovates, a program of the Lagos State Employment Trust Fund (LSETF). The Lagos State Government established the LSETF, a $25 billion USD fund.  The program’s goal is to provide very early-stage tech-enabled ventures with the necessary knowledge, contacts, and guidance from seasoned industry professionals to develop a minimum viable product.

It takes a thorough understanding of the financial industry, technological advancements, and the Nigerian market to lead a sizable fintech business in Nigeria, which is both challenging and rewarding. In this article, Adeola Ajayi offers advice on how to run a market-leading fintech business in Nigeria.

Understanding the regulatory environment is one of the most important things to take into account when running a fintech company in Nigeria. A variety of agencies are in charge of regulating the financial sector in Nigeria, where the regulatory environment is complicated and constantly changing. As a result, it’s essential to keep up with new developments and cultivate solid relationships with key stakeholders, business associations, and governing bodies. By doing this, you can be sure that your company is operating within the law and actively influencing the regulatory environment to meet the needs of the fintech industry.

Leaders of fintech companies in Nigeria must concentrate on innovation and differentiation if they want to succeed in this cutthroat market. This requires a deep understanding of the needs and preferences of the target audience, as well as a willingness to experiment with new technologies and business models.

Leadership also plays a critical role in shaping the culture and values of a fintech company. This means that leaders must be clear about the company’s objective and vision and seek to establish a work environment that is encouraging, welcoming, and empowering for all staff members. This entails encouraging an innovative and collaborative culture and offering opportunities for career advancement.

Finally, leaders of fintech companies in Nigeria must be prepared to take calculated risks and make strategic investments. This implies that they must be able to make informed decisions on where to direct resources and how to prioritize projects. It also necessitates having a long-term outlook, as many of the fintech industry’s most significant investments will take some time to pay off.

Overall, running a fintech company in Nigeria is a difficult and complex task, but one that offers plenty of potential rewards just by seeing how your solution resolves extremely important societal issues. To be successful, leaders must stay up-to-date with the latest industry trends