Float, a South African payments startup, is taking a card-linked instalment product developed at home to one of the world’s most sophisticated fintech markets, with the belief that innovation built for Africa can compete globally.
The Johannesburg-founded payments company, which enables shoppers to split purchases made on existing credit cards into interest-free instalments, has expanded into the United Kingdom (UK). Rather than viewing Britain as a market to learn from, Float believes the constraints of building in South Africa have given it a competitive advantage in one of the world’s most sophisticated fintech ecosystems.
The move reflects a broader shift in African fintech, in which homegrown payment infrastructure and business models are being exported to developed markets rather than simply imported from them.
“We think it’s a broader story than just Float,” founder and chief executive officer (CEO) Alex Forsyth-Thompson told TechCabal in an interview. “South Africa has built genuinely world-class payments and fintech capabilities. On a relative basis, South Africa is as, if not more, competitive than the UK.”
Originally published by TechCabal.