Everyone has a bank app installed on their phone these days. The digital economy is thriving and so are payment and financial services. Despite this industry growth, there are still limitations to these systems. If you fly from Nigeria to London or Kenya, your bank app becomes useless the minute you land at Heathrow/Jomo Kenyatta Airport. This problem is what Benjamin Oyemonlan stays up all night solving through Platnova, the ultimate fintech app.
Platnova is a dynamic fintech platform that is designed to simplify and revolutionise the way individuals and businesses manage their financial transactions across borders. In a crowded fintech landscape, Platnova stands out by offering a comprehensive suite of services, including multi-currency vault savings, multi-currency wallets with instant currency conversion, tuition fee payments, global gift card payments, bill payments, and diverse deposit options like debit cards, bank transfers, Apple pay, Google Pay, cryptocurrency deposits, USSD, mobile money, and more. Whatever your bank is currently doing, Platnova is doing it all and more. The goal, according to Platnova co-founder Benjamin, is to adequately cater to the current needs of a global audience. “Platnova is all-in-one, so we basically do what everybody is doing and more. We’re aiming to make financial transactions seamless and efficient globally” he states.
Platnova is incorporated in five countries with licences and Service Level Agreements (SLAs) with appropriate partners which allows them to do remittances (Both collections and payouts) in multiple currencies and also allows them conduct business in multiple regions. With Platnova, users can fly from Nigeria to Ghana, switch from a Nigerian naira wallet to a Cedi wallet, and start conducting business. Instead of filling Form A in the bank to pay educational fees, you can easily use Platnova to make your payments directly to your foreign university. You can also freelance/work for foreign companies or conduct business and receive foreign currency payments directly into your wallets. Platnova has something for everyone.
Global experience…
According to Benjamin, Platnova was inspired by his understanding of the experiences of travelling Africans. According to a report from the African Centre for Strategic Studies, African migration has been on a steady upward trajectory for the past two decades with over 40 million migrants from Africa travelling within and outside the continent. Travelling from a young age, Benjamin has seen first-hand the challenges Nigerians in the diaspora go through. From London to Dubai and everywhere else, there was no one bank app he could carry along to conduct transactions everywhere he went. He saw the need for a platform that was going to address some of the hassles of dealing with multiple currencies and the challenges of making international payments like tuition payments. “The inspiration for Platnova largely came from recognizing the complexities and limitations of managing financial activities in a globalised economy and the desire to participate in global transactions. We brought together what everybody else is offering and put them all in one easy-to-use platform.” He says.
Something for everyone…
Platnova offers innovative solutions for every user. The platform differentiates itself through its comprehensive range of financial services, especially the fact that these services are not only localised but tailored for global users.
For a lot of fintechs, cross-border payments and diaspora remittances are difficult to facilitate. Dealing with multiple complex regulations and regional compliance measures, managing multiple deposit and payout services efficiently, while also ensuring user safety, is quite a herculean task for most fintechs to handle. To surmount this challenge, Benjamin draws from years of experience in the fintech industry to build Platnova. Speaking of the challenges in this endeavour and why Platnova is equipped to handle it, he says “. I have seven years of fintech experience so I understand what it takes to build this and Platnova enables me to solve problems I have encountered first-hand. Before Platnova started, we spent the last five years doing the underground work that is required to build a super app like ours that solves all your financial problems in one place.” Years of underground work have now culminated in the app that is Platnova.
Platnova is aiming to solve as many problems as possible in the fintech space, from problems with savings to problems with money transfers and contactless payments. Data security and user experience are also important to the fintech industry. Years of experience have taught Benjamin about the importance of users’ trust, security, and the need for continuous innovation to meet evolving customer needs. At Platnova they have found a balance between creating a seamless user experience and maintaining security across multiple countries. “Maintaining this balance and overcoming the challenges that come with it requires a dedicated effort towards innovation, stringent security measures, and adaptability to regulatory compliances so you can sustain long-term goals.” Benjamin states.Regulations change frequently in the financial landscape, so to thrive in this space, one needs to have an innovative mindset and be flexible.
With previous experience as CTO of one of the biggest crypto exchanges in Nigeria (which thrived during his time there); founding BillerPay, a crypto money transfer and bill payment fintech; and years spent doing his part to build the African fintech ecosystem, Benjamin has an understanding of complex markets and a deep well of fintech experience to harness strategy from. “We have identified all the gaps across the financial landscape and the goal is to address these gaps with platnova. We keep learning every day but we also ensure that we have the right partnerships to allow us ride any storms that arrive,” he says.
On autopilot to the moon
The future of Platnova seems very promising. According to Benjamin, Platnova is on autopilot to the moon meaning they’re set for the future and way ahead of whatever users might expect from a fintech company. The company has built a top-notch fintech infrastructure and they’re ready to scale.
Benjamin and his team have plans to expand their global footprint, introduce more innovative financial solutions, and improve user experience. They will also be launching a B2B platform to service other fintech companies and enable them to tap into the outstanding work Platnova is doing and the world-class system they’re building. The goal is to become the go-to platform for both individuals and businesses. “We’ve done the hard work, we’ve solved the problems, and now we’re extending a handshake to support the ecosystem,” he states.
They are also building POSs to allow businesses accept multi-currency payments and are working on launching an ApplePay-enabled international Platnova card. This card will allow users to access card services anywhere in the world and contactless payments.
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What keeps Benjamin up at night these days is knowing that there’s always something he could be doing better. According to him, nothing is ever enough for him when it comes to solving problems. “I innovate for a living and what literally keeps me up at night is knowing that there’s just that one extra thing I need to do to make my users have a better experience. In as much as I have solved a problem, I’ll go back and look for ways to improve that solution”
Platnova is uniquely equipped and strategically positioned to meet the financial service needs of the current world. With its range of current products and the products it is building, Platnova is on its way to becoming the super app for all local and global financial transactions.
