Executive Director and Chief Risk Officer of FairMoney Microfinance Bank, Adebowale Aderoju
The drive for global financial inclusion has increasingly found its strongest ally in digital innovation, a sentiment underscored by the Executive Director and Chief Risk Officer of FairMoney Microfinance Bank, Adebowale Aderoju.
Aderoju said scaling up technology investments is no longer just an operational upgrade for financial institutions; it is the absolute cornerstone of deepening financial inclusion. He stressed that by aggressively funding advanced digital infrastructure, fintech platforms can bridge the massive gap between traditional banking systems and the unbanked populations that remain isolated from the formal economy.
At the heart of this technological push is the necessity to dismantle historical barriers to entry, such as rigid documentation requirements and physical distance from brick-and-mortar banks.
While acknowledging this, he noted that as the Federal Government and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) have set 95 per cent financial inclusion by 2028, as of 2025, the inclusion has reached 76 per cent, meaning that the adult population that is eligible to have bank accounts and do financial transactions through the formal platform are 76 per cent of that population, which are currently included.
He said this means that the 76 per cent is about 128 million people; it also means that the country still has around 24 per cent, which is over 30 million adults that are still excluded.
“Now, they are not 100 per cent excluded because some have mobile phones, and they can do some things on their phones.
According to EFInA data recently released by the Findex Survey, which is one conducted by the World Bank regularly to measure financial inclusion globally, for us in Nigeria, we have about 84 per cent of adults using mobile phones, who have opportunities to do financial transactions through their phones. Out of this population, about 63 per cent actually have a bank account.
Going further, about 54 to 55 per cent have actually done payment transactions—paying for bills, buying tokens and the rest, meaning that there is progress in terms of the inclusion journey for the country and sub-sector,” he stated.
Despite this development, the Fairmoney chief admitted that there are still gaps, which the firm (Fairmoney) has come in to see how it can close. He said the critical gaps fall around knowing how many of the population are using the formal platforms to save money.
“So, we still have about 43 per cent of people who are doing proper savings through our banking platforms. The other major gap is the borrowing and lending aspect, which we are managing adequately well.”
Aderoju emphasised that robust investments in artificial intelligence, cloud computing, and alternative data scoring allow fintechs to design tailored financial products for individuals who lack standard collateral or credit histories.
He said that when technology is leveraged effectively, micro-loans, secure savings wallets, and instant payment rails become accessible to everyday merchants and rural communities through a simple smartphone interface.
Further, he said this strategic shift toward heavy tech investment addresses the critical challenge of high operational costs that traditionally deterred mainstream banks from serving low-income segments. By automating backend processes and optimising digital-first customer acquisition, financial service providers can drastically lower transaction fees.
The FairMoney Chief pointed out that making financial services affordable is just as vital as making them accessible; high-tech adoption ensures that serving micro-economies becomes commercially viable and sustainable over the long term.
Digressing into operations of FairMoney, Aderoju said that promoting a strong savings culture among Nigerians remains critical to reducing loan defaults and strengthening the country’s lending ecosystem.
According to him, “Generally, it is easier to get people to borrow than to save. Everybody needs money, but when you ask people to bring their money and save, very few people respond.”
