In this episode of The Issuer Academy podcast, host Merusha Naidu is joined by Rohit Subramanian, Chief Strategy Officer at TymeBank, and Jeff Parker, CEO of Paymentology. Together, they explore how TymeBank became South Africa's first black-owned digital bank to achieve unicorn status.

What You’ll Learn:

How TymeBank's hybrid phygital model with retail kiosks revolutionised customer onboarding in South Africa
Why building trust through word-of-mouth and customer experience proved more powerful than traditional marketing
The critical balance between innovation and financial inclusion in emerging markets
How to maintain resilience during the "fintech winter" by focusing on core products and profitability
Why successful scaling requires both bold innovation and patience with market readiness
How to build a unicorn while staying true to your mission of financial inclusion

Rohit Subramanian is the Chief Strategy Officer at TymeBank, South Africa's first black-owned digital bank to achieve unicorn status. As a key architect of TymeBank's growth strategy, he has been instrumental in expanding financial access across South Africa while maintaining a lean, customer-centric operating model. Under his leadership, TymeBank has achieved over 80% active customer engagement and pioneered innovative solutions like their successful kiosk-based banking model.

Jeff Parker serves as CEO of Paymentology. With vast experience in financial technology infrastructure, he guides the company's mission to enable innovative payment solutions across emerging markets. His expertise in scaling fintech operations and building trust-based partnerships has helped position Paymentology as a key enabler for next-generation banking services, particularly in Africa and emerging markets.

Episode Resources:

Rohit Subramanian on LinkedIn
Jeff Parker on LinkedIn
TymeBank Website
Merusha Naidu on LinkedIn
Paymentology Website

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