Branka Mracajac, the managing director and chief executive officer, 9 Payment Service Bank (9PSB), has disclosed that Nigeria’s fintech industry is striving to improve the situations occasioned by gender disparity, inclusivity, and financial inclusion to ensure equal growth and opportunities within the financial ecosystem.
“We need more prominent professional women leaders in fintech to inspire young girls. We did not have this in my time, but the dynamics have changed. Women should stay focused, connected, and look for opportunities to kick-start their careers,” she stated during the annual Digital Pay expo held in Lagos recently.
Speaking at the session, Women in Fintech, themed, Inclusive Finance for SMEs, designed to mentor participating female undergraduates across institutions of higher learning in Lagos, Mracajac, emphasised that women are making significant breakthroughs in the fintech sector and in Small and Medium Scale Enterprises (SMEs) in recent years compared to what was obtainable in the past.
The year’s event themed, ‘Redefining Payment,’ focused and analysed the payment habits of the Millennials and Gen Z, the largest generation groups, and spotlighted the crucial effects of the group on the payment world to continue to develop solutions to gain their loyalty and the broader market.
Digital Pay expo is a yearly event designed to bring together industry regulators, fintech top executives, and innovators in the financial technology and payment solution space to collaborate and move the industry forward.
The expo provides a unique opportunity for industry players to discover new innovative cases and technologies that will accelerate the much-needed growth in the fintech ecosystem.
“Women are founding many business entities and SMEs, it is important to have the right mindset, work hard and put in more efforts to educate yourselves, acquire the right expertise and skills, network and find someone who will inspire you and the opportunities would present itself,” Mracajac stated.
The panelists also shared insights on mentorship and how young undergraduates can leverage mentors who have attained progressive stages of career growth; build good rapport; have improved social capital, utilise the social media as a means of communication, and communicate their capability, competencies, and experience.
In addition, they advised participants to offer their best and be ready to add value to prospective organisations they will be employed into. Furthermore, the participants were also implored to build and keep relationships with colleagues.
