Default Alive: Discipline and Culture

Tayo Oviosu, founder & CEO of Paga, one of Africa’s most successful mobile money companies processing over $20 billion in transactions, joins The Afropolitan Podcast for a rare, unfiltered conversation on fintech, leadership, diaspora identity, and building in Nigeria through crisis, chaos, and conviction.

From leaving a stable career in the US to pioneering digital payments in a pre-fintech Nigeria, Tayo shares the untold story behind Paga’s early struggles, near-death moments, and the strategy that turned it into one of Africa’s biggest financial infrastructure companies.

More than entrepreneurship, this episode explores the psychology of resilience, navigating naira devaluation, regulation, global perceptions of Africa, and the emotional weight of building for 200 million people when systems are broken.

He opens up about:
✦ What Silicon Valley still gets wrong about Africa
✦ The hidden cost of building in Nigeria, power, security, FX, people
✦ Why diaspora identity is an advantage, not a conflict
✦ Lessons from raising capital before “African tech” was a thing
✦ Why fintech in Africa isn’t a product, it’s infrastructure
✦ What the next decade of African money will look like
✦ Why founders burn out and how to stay sane in unstable markets

If you’re a founder, operator, investor, or future builder across Africa and the diaspora, this is a masterclass in vision, endurance, and building systems that outlive you.

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LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/in/oviosu
Twitter – https://x.com/tayoov 

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TIMESTAMPS

00:00 Intro

02:18 Leaving the US: The Moment Tayo Realized He Had to Build for Nigeria

05:02 Nigeria’s Cash Chaos: The Origin Story Behind Paga

08:44 How to Raise Money When No One Believed in African Startups

12:33 Regulators, Rejections and Early Paga Near-Failures

16:11 Why Payments in Africa Requires Infrastructure Not Just an App

19:52 How Diaspora Identity Became Tayo’s Hidden Advantage

24:31 Surviving Nigeria’s Naira Crisis, FX, Inflation and Founder Psychology

28:46 Hiring in Nigeria Talent, Trust, Burnout and High-Performance Teams

33:12 The Harsh Reality of Building a Business in Nigeria

36:48 Why Paga Succeeded When So Many African Fintechs Failed

41:20 Africa’s Money Future, Digital Wallets and Financial Inclusion

45:55 How Founders Stay Sane While Building in Dysfunction

50:22 Competing With Banks, Telcos and Big Tech in Emerging Markets

55:03 Government, Regulation and Playing the Long Game

01:00:44 The Chaos Years, Power, Security and Founder Sacrifice

01:05:39 What Silicon Valley Still Misunderstands About Africa

Raising Global Capital Today vs Ten Years Ago

01:15:58 Africa’s Fintech Wave Is Just Beginning

01:20:36 What Founders Need to Win, Discipline, Clarity and Survival Tactics

01:25:18 Should Diaspora Africans Move Back, Tayo’s Unfiltered Advice

01:29:43 What Tayo Would Tell His 25-Year-Old Self

01:34:02 The Next Decade of African Innovation

01:38:27 Final Reflections and Closing Thoughts