By RARZACK OLAEGBE
If Tony builds one, Jim builds his own.
Well, do not run ahead of yourself. An app that does everything for you is a super app. You remember the app for texting. Shopping. Video calls. Games. Friends. Family. Fashion. Football. Casino. You pay for rides, food, bills, and cinema using a single wallet. A super app gives you a single login. A single password. A single email. A single account. We do not have a super app in Nigeria. Even if Alipay berths here, it will fail. If WeChat comes here, it will fail. If you build one, it will fail. If you can build it, call me.
On the one hand
Do you know why we do not have a super app? Our culture does not allow it. A silo culture has held us captive. A silo legacy has held us bound. For instance, if you create a machine that rides on water, I will fragment your market by replicating the machine. That is our culture. We do not support innovation. We copy innovation. A friend discussed with me recently why Nigerians do not succeed together abroad.
On the other hand
He noted that the Pakistanis, Chinese, and Israelis succeed together abroad. They have a community that builds together, not one that builds separately. It adds up. Nigerians do not have a ‘’togetherness’’ culture. That is the reason we do not have a bank as big as Discovery Bank. A fintech that is as big as Ant Group. We like to outdo each other instead of supporting one another to build something massive. We do not have one super fintech firm. We have fragmented fintech firms, doing the same thing or slightly different things.
In the long term
For instance, we have the Dangote and Rabiu cement competition. We have the Fugaz Bank rivalry. We do not have a super app. We have many apps jostling to become super apps. None of the apps has 200 million daily users and is owned by one company. Our silo culture will hinder it. Our ‘’me-too-ego’’ will dice the market. Let us imagine it. This is a mere imagination. Let us imagine this: If all our banks are one bank, how many customers can that one bank attract? If all the multiple apps become one super app, how many customers do we get? If the myriad of fintech firms are one, how many innovations do we get?
Our culture will emerge and say, hang on, who will own the one bank, the one super app, and one super fintech? However, I would rather be a cleaner of a super app with 1 billion monthly active users than be the owner of an app struggling to keep afloat in a fragmented market.
If a fintech builds an app and sustains it until it becomes a super app, what will stifle its growth is waiting already. Its name is Slow. Slow internet. Slow regulation. Slow collaboration. Instead of collaboration, you will get ‘’app-wagon’’. If Ikem builds a super app, I will not use it because Ikem hails from Nsukka. If Sola constructs one, you will not use it because Sola is an Igbajo boy. If Iyin promotes it, you will not use it because Iyin is a Nepo boy. If Tony builds one, Jim will build his own. If Segun builds one, Abu will not rest until he finds a way to build one. Have you wondered why all super apps are in Asia?
In the short term
I have 10 apps. A super app is what I need. I do not need to download separate apps for every task.
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