Sanjay Swamy, Shripati Acharya on fintech in 2023 and harnessing opportunities
Startup veterans – Sanjay Swamy and Shripati Acharya – have left their mark on the entrepreneurial ecosystem. Today, they are tapping new-age founders to lead the Digital India revolution with Prime Venture Partners.
2022 has been a challenging year for the Indian startup ecosystem and technology in general. But in 2023, a completely new world awaits, especially for the fintech sector.
In this special holiday episode, Sanjay and Shripati, managing partners of Prime Venture Partners – usually sitting across the table – discuss the exciting opportunities that await the sector and how entrepreneurs can grow in it.
Fintech in 2023
Contrary to the obvious interpretation, the regulator is starting to put proper railings around what fintech is, what it is expected to do, and what the regulatory parties intend to do. And when things become more straight-jacketed, it will create a backdrop for many possibilities.
With opportunities starting to emerge across lending, investments, insurance, payments and emerging banks, the established banks, NBFCs, etc. will also need to up their game.
Since the digital infrastructure is already set in India, consumer expectations of a digital-first experience, like getting a loan approval within minutes, e-KYC and such, are already set.
“You want fintech with more financial service providers either getting licenses themselves, or partnering with those who have them and bringing a customer-facing solution to the market,” says Sanjay.
He continues, “On the other hand, you will now have an opportunity for infrastructure technology providers, who will build on top of the bank’s core infrastructure and give the banks or NBFCs themselves a much more digital experience for their customers. .”
Establish successful partnerships with banks
For a fintech to work, a strong, reliable and trusting banking partnership is a core requirement. In the case of a bank, the regulator holds the bank accountable. So what fintech needs is distribution, product innovation and aggregation efficiency to stand out and create trust.
Based on his experience, Sanjay states that it always works to have an alumnus from the banking industry in the founding team. In addition, a fintech must have strong tech jobs. And for a successful fintech, the co-founder should be a fantastic product person.
“I think the reason fintech should exist is that they can provide a level of product capability, innovation and customer experience that the incumbents haven’t been able to over the years,” he says.
In addition to the team, startups must build products by taking into account data privacy expectations, PCI DSS compliance, software compliance, etc., from day zero.
“These things are best done when it’s a young company and you can maintain that rigor. The third important thing is that fintech should not depend on one partner. From the very beginning, you have to design it so that it will always be a multi-partner , although you can start with one,” advises Sanjay.
How to take your idea to Prime Ventures as a startup
“We started with fintech, probably even before the term existed, and it’s been a big part of our heart and our brain. And quite frankly, if you’re a startup, a founder with an idea, just send us a message on Twitter, WhatsApp, or email,” says Sanjay.
Prime has worked successfully with entrepreneurs without an idea – whether in the beginning or during a happy pivot.
“I think when we approach this from a co-creation – from let’s create, let’s see where the big opportunities are, the big pain points are, the big profit pots are, and if this team is well suited for the the opportunity – so we can do a lot of work together, he says.
Since fintech in India is going to be a huge space, Sanjay urges startups and founders not to wait; do some reps and get something going. In conclusion, he advises entrepreneurs to keep an open mind about where the opportunities lie and how the market will develop.
You can listen to the entire episode here.
Note:
2:00 a.m.: Fintech is a gift that keeps on giving
07:00: FLDG, the regulator, and the regulated
10:00 a.m.: How to cooperate with banks
16:00: Flow-based lending and new opportunities
25:00: Opportunities in infrastructure for banking
30:00: Co-creation and great opportunities