Innovative Lending in Emerging Markets

Hello fintech friends,

Last week, I sat down with Doug Rickett, the founder and CEO of Payjoy.

If you work in fintech and you don't know Payjoy, well, you should. The company's tagline is "finance for the next billion." And they're well on their way: As of 2025 they have brought 3 billion dollars in credit to 16 million customers, doubling in the last two years while remaining strongly profitable and sustainable for the long term.

PayJoy is a mission-first financial service provider dedicated to helping under-served customers in emerging markets to achieve financial stability and success.

They lend through their patented technology that turns a smartphone into digital collateral. Their cutting-edge machine learning, data science, and anti-fraud AI allow them to offer the lowest cost and qualify the most customers in the industry.

This year, the company celebrates its 10th anniversary, with projected 2025 revenue of over $650 million and $110 million in profit.

Doug and I discussed how his time at Stanford Business School led him to Africa to manage logistics – an area he admits he knew nothing about – for solar lighting company D.light, and how that in-turn inspired him to found Payjoy in 2015. It's one of the most fascinating CEO stories that I've heard in fintech. Well worth listening to his whole journey from start to finish.

Enjoy!