A sandbox is a playground with product testing tools. But regulators sometimes are interested in making sure it’s a safe playground. You are reading Factsheet, our series of specific guides on experiencing and using technology platforms in Africa. Whether you are looking for knowledge on getting your African film on Netflix, raising a seed round or finishing an online design course, we are covering all that.
—
Building a new value-adding product for a mass market is like cooking for a crowd without an evolving palate. You’re probably a decent chef, but previous success does not guarantee acceptance for each new meal. It’s wise to try small portions in a private kitchen before declaring open house.
Innovation in the financial services industry is much the same. Consumer tastes are not remarkably different today than they were years ago – saving, investing, mortgage, borrowing, insurance. However, users want to access these with more convenience, personalisation and security.
Technology is the means for fulfilling this at scale, hence the rise of fintech. Serious financial services companies, by default, now structure their systems around digital tech powered by softwares.
It’s resulting in the prominence of application programming interfaces (APIs), and a growing interest in financial services sandboxes. What is a sandbox?
In cybersecurity and high-level programming, a sandbox is a safe space for testing novel features without any harm to the computers or networks hosting the test. Applied to other fields, it’s a controlled environment for experimentation without public judgment.
Yes, like a private kitchen.
Scalable financial services innovation needs such safe spaces. A typical fintech sandbox is a virtual web-based platform for developers to test product ideas and get a sense of usability.
Ecobank, the pan-African bank with branches in 33 countries, launched a banking sandbox in January to give banks and fintechs access to its APIs. Five African fintechs including Flutterwave and Africa’s Talking, the Kenya-based payments infrastructure builder, were invited to participate in the sandbox’s pilot launch.
But sandboxes should not be for companies alone. Individuals prospecting for ideas or already in the building process should have access to tools with which to fix bugs and collaborate with established institutions.Financial Services Innovators Association of Nigeria (FSI) has one such sandbox. Launched in December 2019, it became the first platform to host multiple APIs from a variety of African financial institutions.Aituaz Kola-Oladejo, FSI’s Executive Director and founder, says the beauty of the sandbox is the central view […]
