• Tuesday, December 03, 2024
businessday logo

BusinessDay

Nigerian fintechs jostle for talent amid market boom

How fintech firms can navigate tough regulatory environment – Legal expert

Nigerian fintech companies that are banking on the continued positive growth of the market are back in the market recruiting and upskilling existing talents.

Companies that have increased recruitment activities include Flutterwave, Moniepoint, OPay, Palmpay, and Paga.

Despite what could pass as a turbulent year for many businesses, many fintech companies have thrived, reporting huge growth in the volume and value of transactions, as well as massive new user acquisition.

Moniepoint said it has seen over 1.6 million businesses use its platform and also acquired a fintech in Kenya as part of its expansion plans in the country.

Flutterwave has reactivated its plans to become a publicly listed company as soon as possible after launching in new markets outside Africa. Opay also announced plans to apply for a digital bank licence in Egypt.

The companies are now making frantic efforts to beef up their workforce as they plot the next expansion move.

Read also:NGX, CSCS, Euroclear to create dollar settlement platform for Fintechs

Flutterwave announced on Monday an inaugural Engineering Mobility Programme in India in collaboration with Capgemini, a global business and technology transformation services provider.

Flutterwave’s Nigeria and UK-based engineering teams will work with Capgemini’s extensive technology talent in Bangalore to share industry best practices and nurture the next-generation workforce.

“We’re sending engineers from our offices in Nigeria, Kenya, South Africa, and Egypt to Capgemini’s offices in Bangalore, providing a unique opportunity for them to exchange knowledge and experience as well as discover new cultures and ways of innovating for emerging economies,” said Gbenga Agboola, founder and CEO of Flutterwave.

The announcement comes less than two weeks after Flutterwave announced that it had hired nearly 85 percent of its 299 graduate trainees after the end of the inaugural programme.

Moniepoint also announced the graduation of the pioneer cohort from its HatchDev programme, a nine-month specialised training, designed to produce hundreds of market-ready software engineers every year.

The company said it is taking proactive steps to bridge the gap in the developers market in Nigeria. The country only has 115,000 developers, indicating a significant talent shortage that could pose a big challenge for a company like Moniepoint with big continental ambitions. Moniepoint is partnering with Nithub for the programme, which offers it a pool of software engineering talent.

The programme, which began in October 2022, aspires to shape 300 junior software engineers, 100 intelligent systems developers, and 100 IoT embedded systems engineers. According to Moniepoint, the professionals, upon completion of the course, will be readily absorbed into a market eager for their expertise.

“Nigeria is a booming economy, and with the innovative contributions of tech businesses like Moniepoint that are solving some of society’s critical issues, it is very gratifying to be a significant part of those giving local talent the training and tools they need to compete on a global stage.

“Also, this initiative aligns perfectly with our vision of empowering the next generation of tech leaders. We believe that be investing in talent development, we can accelerate Nigeria’s growth in the digital economy and contribute to the overall prosperity of our great nation,” said Chukwudum Ekwueme, vice-president, of engineering at Moniepoint.

In September, OPay and PalmPay also went to the market to recruit for different positions. Paga also has several positions open including senior software engineer, software engineer, inside sales consultant, and sales executive.

Join BusinessDay whatsapp Channel, to stay up to date

Open In Whatsapp