By Aduragbemi Omiyale
Financial technology (fintech) companies have been charged to work toward developing resilient business models, which should be built around quality service delivery.
This advice was given at a workshop in Lagos organised by Hydrogen Payment Services Company Limited in conjunction with the Co-Creation Hub (CcHub).
One of the panellists, Mr Emeka Awagu, who is the Chief Technology Officer of Hydrogen, emphasised that while artificial intelligence (AI) innovations are good, meeting the needs of customers cannot be underplayed, saying it is key to fintech growth.
He advised startups to listen to customer demands and understand their needs in order to develop the right solutions that will lead to long-term market viability.
“Innovation is key for startup growth. However, understanding customers’ needs and changes in behaviour will help any startup to innovate better.
“Startups must be flexible and agile to develop solutions with high interoperability and processing speed, and they must be ready to learn from startups that have failed,” he said.
With an estimated 61.07 per cent of startups failing, the speakers stressed the need for prudence.
“Statistically, a staggering number of startups fail, often due to financial mismanagement. Hence, founders must prioritise understanding and maintaining a healthy Cost-to-Earnings ratio.
“It is not just a number, but a pivotal indicator of a company’s financial health as well as being a key attractiveness determinant for investors,” Mr Awagu added.
Another panellist, Mr Ina Alogwu, who is the Group Director of Digital Transformation for ARM Holdco, Mr Ina Alogwu, stressed the need for startups to develop sustainable products and solutions that will help them remain competitive in an environment that is faced with harsh economic realities.
“Many startup businesses fail within their first five years, however, upcoming startups should not be discouraged, rather develop a culture that will encourage them to understand the reasons for failure and learn from mistakes. Startups should not be too rigid with their solutions and should be ready to accept changes that will drive innovation,” Mr Alogwu stated.
Business Post reports that the event, moderated by the Digital Marketing Manager for Hydrogen, Ms Miracle Ezechi, was themed Adapting Fintech Business Models to Economic Climes: Flexibility, Agility and Customer-centricity.
