The FinTech Association of Nigeria (FintechNGR) has launched The Start-Up Marketplace, an innovative platform designed to provide start-ups in the fintech ecosystem with free and heavily discounted services in funding, legal, infrastructure, cybersecurity, data privacy, business development, and a variety of other areas, in order to help them grow faster.
Ade Bajomo, President, FinTechNGR, and the Executive Director, Information Technology and Operations at Access Bank Plc made this announcement at the association’s first conference of the year, tagged ‘Fintech Outlook 2022’.
He reiterated that “The Start-Up Marketplace will aid in the development and depth of Nigeria’s FinTech talent pool.”
“The platform will also encourage research and development to elevate innovators and start-ups, foster a supportive regulatory environment to grow the industry, facilitate local investors’ participation in FinTech funding, and position local start-ups and innovators to build and develop durable and strategic intellectual properties,” he added.
The rising rate of investment in Fintech start-ups demonstrates how much the industry has piqued the interest of investors and Venture Capitalists who perceive the industry’s growth and resiliency potential.
FinTechs dominated fundraising in Africa in 2021, accounting for about $3 billion of the roughly $5 billion raised by African digital start-ups.
Nigerian start-ups raised $1.09 billion in the same year, accounting for 73.5 percent of the $1.37 billion raised by start-ups worldwide.
Daniel Awe, the Head of the Africa Fintech Foundry, highlighted increased innovation as a crucial cause for the rising interest.
“We’re already seeing FinTechs innovate in areas like greentech, digital insurance, blockchain, and financial inclusion, to name a few.”
“That said, we must continue to create strategic alliances with other ecosystem participants in order to develop game-changing innovative solutions and uncover new opportunities for growth, consumer pleasure, and improved business practices.”
The Foundry is contributing to this growth by launching businesses that can compete in a variety of industry verticals by offering new and enhanced digital products to end-users, allowing for the establishment of new markets.”
The virtual event also revealed trends and forecasts across FinTech verticals, including lending, payment, mobile money, banking, infrastructure, regulation, partnerships, skillsets, wealthtech, insurtech, cybersecurity, data privacy, open banking, decentralised finance, and other sectors.
