DLM

The Nigerian payments landscape is a Red Ocean.
Banks are fighting Fintechs. Telcos are fighting Banks. Everyone is shouting louder and cutting margins to capture the same 20% of salary earners in Lagos and Abuja.

During my recent session at Lagos Business School (LBS) for the CRDCU delegates, we explored a dangerous question:

What if we stopped competing?
This is the core of Blue Ocean Strategy. It’s not about incremental innovation (making an app 2% faster); it’s about Value Innovation—simultaneously increasing value while driving costs down.

The Lessons from the Blue Ocean:
• Look to the “Non-Customers”: The market woman in Onitsha or the farmer in Benue doesn’t need a “better app.” They need Human Trust.
• The Moniepoint Shift: They didn’t compete on glamorous HQs. They eliminated the physical branch and created a “Human ATM” network where the “Branch Manager” is your neighbor.
• The ERRC Framework: To find your blue water, you must decide what to Eliminate, Reduce, Raise, and Create.

The 2026 Frontier
The next “Blue Oceans” in Nigeria won’t be found in crowded urban hubs. They are in:
1. AI-driven Credit for the informal sector.
2. Embedded Finance within trade and logistics.
3. Public Sector Delivery that eliminates physical presence (Value Innovation in Governance).

My challenge to you today: Look at your current strategy. If your curve looks exactly like your competitor’s, you are in a Red Ocean.
What are the three things you will Eliminate next week to start swimming toward the blue?
LBS FirstFounders DLM