The President of the Fintech Association of Nigeria, Dr Stanley Jacob, has said that Nigerian fintechs are doing well despite the funding drought currently being experienced by startups globally.
Speaking on Wednesday at a press conference on the upcoming Nigeria Fintech Week (NFW) 2025, Dr Jacob said investors are still injecting funds into Nigerian fintechs but noted that there has been a shift from early-stage backing to more substantial investments in growth-stage companies.
“I think the current situation has been fairly positive for Nigeria, because despite the decline we’ve seen globally, we still saw some Nigerian fintechs do very well with funding. But what we’ve seen is a shift.
“A lot more investment is going into growth-stage fintechs, a different view from what we used to have before, where the investments were focused on seed-stage startups,” he said.
Opportunity for domestic investors
While noting that foreign investors are focusing more on growth fintechs because they want more assurance, Dr. Jegede said this has created an opportunity for domestic investors to start looking at young fintechs with potential.
- He highlighted the rise of locally backed fintech initiatives like Zest (by Stanbic IBTC), Quad (GTBank), and Hydrogen (Access Bank), among others, all of which are thriving without foreign VC backing.
- He added that while angel investors and high-net-worth individuals have quietly been backing startups behind the scenes, many aren’t vocal about their participation because they operate outside traditional VC frameworks.
- He also pointed to reforms by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) as a key enabler for the future, particularly around making it easier for fintechs to list on the stock exchange.
“When fintechs begin to go public, individuals and local entities can begin to invest more transparently. But even now, we know local organizations and some individuals are already investing, quietly but meaningfully,” Dr Jacob said.
NFW 2025
Speaking on the Association’s event, Dr Jacob said this year’s Nigerian Fintech Week 2025 will be the most expansive yet.
With the theme “The FinTech Ecosystem Symphony: Orchestrating Nigeria’s Digital Future,” he said the 2025 edition scheduled to hold in October will bring together players from across Nigeria’s economic spectrum including oil and gas, aviation, education, entertainment, agriculture, FMCG, and more, to explore how fintech can unlock efficiencies in every sector.
“This is not just about fintechs talking to themselves. We’re bringing in CEOs and decision-makers from other industries who know their challenges. They will guide how fintechs can truly solve real-world problems,” he explained.
Also speaking, Vice President of the Association and Chair of the 2025 NFW, Dr Jameelah Sharrief-Ayedun, noted that for the first time, besides having diverse sector participation, the NFW will be happening concurrently in more than one city.
According to her, beyond Lagos, the event will also be holding in Abuja, Delta, and Enugu at the same time.
“By broadening that reach, we’re going to be both in the north as well as the southeast and south-south in addition to Lagos.
“Fintech is no longer for a select few. From the aviation sector to agriculture, from secondary school students to startup founders, this year, everyone has a seat at the table,” she said.
Sharrief-Ayedun noted that the job of the Association as an ecosystem is to orchestrate Nigeria’s digital future. According to her, the theme of the NFW 2025 encapsulates the goal of the entire ecosystem, which is to orchestrate Nigeria’s digital future.
