Builders in Fintech (BIF) will host the maiden edition of Fintech & Chill in Lagos on June 27, bringing together founders, operators, builders, and thought leaders for conversations around the theme: “Beyond the Hype: The Reality of Building in Fintech.”
At a time when many conversations in tech are dominated by funding announcements, expansion plans, and success stories, the event aims to spotlight the realities that often remain hidden. These include the setbacks, pivots, difficult decisions, and lessons that come with building fintech products and companies in Nigeria over the long term.
But why are such builder-to-builder conversations important, and why shouldn’t they be too formal?
1. Success Stories Rarely Tell the Whole Story
African tech has come a long way, and it goes without saying that Nigeria is Africa’s leading technology hub, with Lagos alone attracting billions of dollars in investment and producing globally recognised companies.
Funding rounds, unicorn announcements, expansion plans, and breakthrough products have become familiar headlines. But headlines rarely tell the full story.
With such big wins across social media, it is easy to believe that building in tech is a straight line from idea to product-market fit, followed by growth and international expansion. But anyone who has spent time building knows that in reality, products fail, businesses change strategies, teams experience growing pains, customer behaviour evolves, regulations shift, and markets become more competitive.
For instance, PaidHR CEO Seye Bandele recently revealed that his team shut down the product they had spent 15 months building after receiving expert feedback. It then took another five months to rebuild.
That was nearly two years of learning, iteration, and difficult decisions before eventually launching into the market. Conversations like that rarely make it to conference stages, social media threads, or media headlines. When they do, they often provide far more value to aspiring builders than another announcement about growth metrics or funding rounds.
Unfortunately, these experiences are not always shared openly. Companies are under pressure to maintain momentum, attract investors, reassure customers, and retain talent. But when only the wins are visible, younger builders may develop unrealistic expectations, and the ecosystem loses out on valuable lessons.
Some of the most useful knowledge in tech often comes from understanding what went wrong, what nearly failed, and what had to change before progress was possible.
2. Builders Need More Than Inspiration
Inspiration has its place, but builders need more than motivation. People building products, companies, and careers need context, perspective, and stories that reflect the realities they encounter every day.
Hearing how a founder navigated regulatory uncertainty, how an operations team managed rapid growth, or how a product leader responded when an initial strategy failed can be far more valuable than another polished success story.
These conversations create room for nuance. They remind us that growth is messy, progress takes time, and setbacks are often part of the process rather than evidence of failure.
More importantly, they help people make better decisions. For instance, a product manager struggling with adoption challenges may learn more from hearing how another team navigated similar issues than from a motivational keynote.
An early-stage founder may benefit more from understanding why a strategy failed than from hearing a polished success story stripped of its setbacks.
This is one reason communities and ecosystem events are important. They create spaces where lessons can be shared openly and where builders can learn from one another’s experiences rather than repeating the same mistakes.
3. Building Is Bigger Than Founders
When people talk about tech, the spotlight often falls on founders. While founders play a critical role, ecosystems are built by far more than a handful of visible individuals.
Think of the engineers who keep systems running, the designers who shape experiences, operators who ensure execution happens, marketers who connect products with customers, compliance professionals navigating regulations, and community builders who bring people together.
Yet these contributions rarely receive the same attention as founders and CEOs. Some of the most important decisions affecting product quality, customer trust, and operational excellence are made by people whose names never appear in press releases.
Recognising these contributions creates healthier conversations and stronger communities. It also broadens our understanding of what it means to be a builder.
Which is perhaps why some of the best conversations in tech happen when titles are left at the door, and everyone is simply talking builder to builder.
4. Stronger Ecosystems Are Built on Shared Lessons
As the industry becomes more competitive and expectations continue to evolve, collaboration and knowledge sharing will matter more than ever.
Healthy ecosystems are not built solely on success stories. They are built on trust, transparency, and a willingness to share both positive and painful lessons.
This does not mean celebrating failure for its own sake or becoming cynical about the future. Instead, it means embracing the idea that honest conversations are just as important as ambitious dreams when building.
Because when builders share what they have learned, everyone benefits. As the ecosystem matures, builders need more than networking opportunities and inspirational speeches. They need spaces where difficult questions can be asked, assumptions challenged, and experiences shared openly.
They need opportunities to hear from founders who made costly mistakes, operators who scaled teams, marketers who navigated growth challenges, and product leaders who learned painful lessons.
These conversations do not always happen on social media. Neither do they always make the headlines. But they are often the conversations that move the ecosystem forward.
5. Tech Doesn’t Always Have to Be Serious
In many ways, the best conversations in tech are rarely the most “serious” ones. They are the candid discussions that happen without fancy titles in a space where builders are comfortable enough to share their stories.
Those conversations are insightful, relatable, and sometimes, even funny. Because building is already serious work and builders can chill too.
Where Are Builders Sharing Such Stories?
On June 27, BIF will bring those conversations under one roof in Lagos through the maiden edition of Fintech & Chill.
“Beyond the Hype” by BIF is an invitation for builders to speak more openly about what building really looks like, including the wins and the realities that accompany them. Because beyond the funding announcements and success stories are the stories builders rarely tell — and those stories may contain the lessons that matter most.
Attendees will hear firsthand from some of the industry’s most experienced operators and leaders, including Feranmi Ajetumobi, Director of Growth at Timon (formerly Flutterwave and Cowrywise); Kazeem Noibi, CTO at Cray (formerly VP of Technology at FairMoney and CTO at Fincra); and Tokunbo Omonubi, Chief Product Officer at Remita, alongside other founders, builders, and thought leaders shaping the future of technology in Nigeria.
And yes, there will be networking, interactive games, and enough builder stories to remind everyone that nobody really has it all figured out.
Because Fintech & Chill isn’t just about fintech. It’s about the “chilled” people building it.
Be a part of Fintech & Chill 2026
📅 June 27, 2026
📍 Lagos, Nigeria
🎟 Early Bird Tickets: ₦5,000
Secure your seat and join the conversation.
