FairMoney a republié ceci
Founders in Africa should stop building the "X of Y." That's Laurin Nabuko Hainy, Co-founder & CEO of credit-led neobank FairMoney, critiquing an approach to entrepreneurship that's prevalent across emerging markets. "We're not building the X of Y. We're not building the Revolut of Nigeria or Africa," Hainy insists. "Comparables make you easy to understand to investors, but the downside is you build your product based on what some VC thinks you should be doing versus what the market needs." Hainy points to specific examples: "Think about Chipper Cash. They say they built a Revolut of Africa. But the reality is that the Revolut of Africa doesn't work. We're sitting on currencies that are way too volatile. There's a different regulator in every single country." FairMoney says its Africa-native approach, on the other hand, continues to deliver results: • It's now one of the largest neobanks in Nigeria with over 1.5 million monthly active users • It generated ~$80M (₦121.9 billion) in revenue in 2024 — up 62% year-over-year • It made ~$5M (₦7.9 billion) in after-tax profit in 2024 — up over 900% from 2023 Moreover, the majority (~56%) of its ₦129.9 billion loan book is funded by customer deposits, significantly reducing the company's risk profile and its reliance on external capital. "Don't sell what the investors want to hear, sell what the customer wants to get, even though the capital markets might not understand that," Hainy advises. "It's a bad short-term decision, but a very good long-term decision." The company is demonstrating that growth plus profitability is possible by solving for challenges in the local context — rather than simply replicating what worked for Revolut, Nubank, and successful neobanks elsewhere — and by showing strong cost discipline. "We've always been extremely focused on profitability since 2019, even during the funding boom when that was less sexy and everyone wants you to burn more and be more aggressive," Hainy explains. "We've always been extremely focused on unit economics. We never offer a product that doesn't make us money." This focus on profitability and market-driven solutions may have seemed 'unsexy' during the era of growth-at-all-costs, but it's now proving to be a winning strategy as the funding landscape shifts. What's your take? - Do you agree about the downsides of "X for Y" thinking in African markets? - If you're building or investing in African markets, how do you balance the appeal of proven global models with the need for local adaptation/contextualization? - As Africa's tech ecosystem matures, will we see fewer 'X of Y' startups and more truly 'Africa-native' solutions and business models? 👇🏽 Let us know in the comments Hear more from Hainy here: https://shorturl.at/Xetd5 | https://lnkd.in/ec_nHCZy ____ 🚨 Afridigest is building the most valuable platform for entrepreneurs in #Africa, starting with ideas, analysis, & insights. Subscribe today: afridigest.com/subscribe