By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The innovative contributions of Sterling Bank Plc to the financial technology (fintech) industry over the years have earned it recognition at the 2022 edition of the Nigerian Fintech Awards held in Lagos.
The Nigerian Fintech Awards is the biggest and most recognised fintech award in the country dedicated to honouring excellence in financial technologies and services companies and products.
The organisers of the awards, Financial Technology Publication (FINTECH Africa), announced the Chief Executive Officer of Sterling Bank, Mr Abubakar Suleiman, as the winner of the Special Leadership Award.
FINTECH Africa said it was impressed with how the financial institution has contributed to the growth of the industry over the years through the introduction of digital products aimed at making banking services seamless.
Mr Suleiman, who was also the keynote speaker at the awards ceremony and delivered a paper on the theme Disruption, said disruption was such an impressive word, “But we forget one thing, that less than one out of every effort at disruption leads to emptiness.”
He said, “99 per cent of efforts at disruption either do not happen or result in personal loss,” noting that it is not every time that the desired results are obtained through disruption.
The banker pointed out that there is a need to think carefully about disruption because it is a double-edged sword, and there is no part of it that suggests certainty about the outcome.
The CEO said most people tend not to be comfortable with change.
“There are few people that thrive in disruption because the average human being just wants things to remain the way they are,” Mr Suleiman said.
He, therefore, advised fintechs to change their perception of disruption because there is no certainty about its likely outcome, adding that the more comfortable one is, the less he is likely to want a change, noting that disruptors need to appreciate the value of partnerships and distribute risks.
He also advised operators in the fintech space to be sure that their partners are those they need, even though they are licensed to shake the table.
Business Post reports that the Nigerian Fintech Awards provides public recognition for the achievements of fintech companies and products in categories, including payments, personal finance, wealth management, fraud protection, banking, lending, regulatory and insurance tech, among others.
Aduragbemi Omiyale 
Dipo Olowookere