Name: Building a startup
Uploaded: 2021-12-01T17:24:01.633Z
Duration: 401.37
Description: Fintech startups have increased by 72% between 2018-2020, which is a strong indicator that development will only continue to rise. But how do you get started in fintech, and what are the most important aspects to be aware of. Four Fintech startup founders offer their thoughts on what they would have liked to know if they could go back in time.

Building a startup.vtt

English

{{00:00:34}}
The big one is.

{{00:00:37}}
It's true when they say that every
company is a FinTech company, right.

{{00:00:42}}
And it's often intimidating if
you are not, if you don't have a

{{00:00:46}}
FinTech background to enter the
industry, but actually I think,

{{00:00:51}}
and I hope many people with diverse
backgrounds, like an epidemiologist,

{{00:00:56}}
come and build FinTech products.

{{00:00:59}}
Because without firsthand experience
of a world that  lot of true fintechs

{{00:01:05}}
don't see, it's, it's really hard to
build products and cater for them.

{{00:01:08}}
So if you look at some of the more
successful,  you know, clients of

{{00:01:12}}
ours, people, as I brought up the
Alzheimer's example earlier, one of

{{00:01:16}}
the founders is a clinician, right?

{{00:01:19}}
In other examples, we can, we
can see that people are coming

{{00:01:22}}
in from all walks of life.

{{00:01:24}}
And so the advice would be, you know,
don't be scared to start something right.

{{00:01:29}}
And stick to your passion because there
are people out there that would be.

{{00:01:32}}
Yeah.

{{00:01:32}}
So we actually bootstrapped the company.

{{00:01:34}}
So we didn't really raise founders only
from angel investors here and there.

{{00:01:38}}
there was never a target and we've been
profitable since we started the company.

{{00:01:44}}
But if there's one advice I have is be
very careful with bringing on investors.

{{00:01:49}}
You know, you don't have to raise
money don't, you don't have to.

{{00:01:53}}
There's a way to make
it work without funding.

{{00:01:55}}
I think for me, I had
a pretty good network.

{{00:01:59}}
Before I came into the startup space,
you know, infinite financial services

{{00:02:03}}
and, you know, a lot of my friends
and professional organizations, but I

{{00:02:06}}
think what I didn't understand is they
think Donald Rumsfeld said this, like

{{00:02:10}}
there's a known unknowns and unknown
unknowns and coming into the startup.

{{00:02:15}}
There's like the, actually he didn't say.

{{00:02:17}}
Somebody else said it before, but
he made it popular, but he did

{{00:02:21}}
say, but he didn't come up with it.

{{00:02:23}}
So to clarify,  the startup world
is a lot of unknown unknowns, right?

{{00:02:28}}
So what I would have done a little bit
more is build an even more strategic

{{00:02:34}}
advisory team around me, of senior
folks or people that have been through

{{00:02:39}}
it because you've been through, you're
going to go through so many ups and

{{00:02:41}}
downs in the fires of the startup world,
because you're literally taking something

{{00:02:46}}
from an idea into a real company.

{{00:02:48}}
Right.

{{00:02:49}}
So that whole ideation to early
build, to prototype, to creating

{{00:02:54}}
strategic partnerships, to, you know,
creating the platform technology-wise

{{00:02:58}}
is so many different things, right.

{{00:03:01}}
As a founder and especially CEO as a
founder, you're kind of like trying

{{00:03:04}}
to juggle all of these things and move
all the like seven balls down the road.

{{00:03:10}}
And so it's super difficult to do
that and do a well all the time.

{{00:03:14}}
But  if you have guidance, you know, from
folks that have been through it and say,

{{00:03:19}}
Hey, in this moment, you may need to focus
on this a little bit more in this moment.

{{00:03:24}}
And in these that guidance sometimes
can be introductions to other people in

{{00:03:28}}
their networks that can say, "Hey how

{{00:03:29}}
can you provide some insight
to Castleigh to other folks.

{{00:03:33}}
And I've for that aspect, I've tried
to give back myself and pay it forward.

{{00:03:38}}
So I try to help ideation or earlier
founders as well think through some

{{00:03:42}}
of their challenges as they go from
corporate over into the startup side.

{{00:03:47}}
Right.

{{00:03:47}}
What to prepare for how to think about it.

{{00:03:50}}
Sometimes you say, Hey, this
thing not knowing will take

{{00:03:53}}
me three months to build.

{{00:03:54}}
And in reality, it's gonna take you six.

{{00:03:56}}
Right?

{{00:03:56}}
So there's again, a lot
of unknown, unknowns.

{{00:04:00}}
So, how do you minimize some of those
as much as you can obviously say you can

{{00:04:05}}
business plan it out, but the business
plan is kind of like the guardrails and

{{00:04:09}}
then you get into the actual building part
and now you get your hands dirty, right?

{{00:04:13}}
So I think from a startup standpoint,
again, depending on what role you

{{00:04:17}}
are in a startup, you know, senior
tech leader, kind of CEO, whatever

{{00:04:21}}
chief marketing officer, you're
going to play different roles.

{{00:04:25}}
You know, at the, kind of at
the CEO level, you're just

{{00:04:28}}
main problem solving right?

{{00:04:29}}
On a day-to-day basis.

{{00:04:31}}
You know, you're trying to
put out fire drills, you're

{{00:04:33}}
trying to build relationships.

{{00:04:34}}
You're trying to, you know, get
to the customers or, you know, get

{{00:04:38}}
to your users and provide value.

{{00:04:40}}
But at the end of the day, the
biggest part for whatever platform

{{00:04:44}}
startup you're working is what's
the value you're providing.

{{00:04:47}}
Right?

{{00:04:47}}
If the value you're providing
is undeniable , you'll deliver.

{{00:04:52}}
Right.

{{00:04:52}}
And you'll have success.

{{00:04:54}}
But you have to make sure
that that is clearly defined

{{00:04:57}}
and it may change over time.

{{00:04:59}}
Right?

{{00:04:59}}
So you have to be open to that
again, why I went from one startup

{{00:05:02}}
and pivoted to another, because
that value prop changed over time.

{{00:05:06}}
Right?

{{00:05:07}}
So that's something that you have to be
open to, but as much as you can prepare

{{00:05:12}}
as much as you can build that, you know,
strategic advisory board and just absorb

{{00:05:18}}
because this is a different like I said,
different animal than the corporate world.

{{00:05:24}}
And so in the corporate
world is a lot of structure.

{{00:05:26}}
There's a lot of like, I would say help.

{{00:05:28}}
But it has help.

{{00:05:29}}
But there's a lot, again, this department
does this, this one specializes in this.

{{00:05:33}}
You're like it legal
HR, you know, janitor.

{{00:05:37}}
And so there's a lot of just
like, get everything done, you

{{00:05:40}}
know, but how do you prioritize?

{{00:05:42}}
Because you may not be able to do
20 things in one day, but maybe

{{00:05:45}}
you effectively can do six..

{{00:05:46}}
But those six things have to
be the most impactful of the

{{00:05:49}}
20 that you have on the list.

{{00:05:51}}
So learning how to prioritize,
shifting focuses quickly as

{{00:05:55}}
needed, but still being focused.

{{00:05:58}}
So again, it's a little bit of irony
to be like, you have to be able to

{{00:06:01}}
do a lot, but still do a lot focused
is, is something that is a hard task.

{{00:06:08}}
But again, just have good sounding
boards, have good support, build

{{00:06:11}}
those things,  and spend time
nurturing really good relationships.

{{00:06:15}}
Just do it.

{{00:06:16}}
Coming to events like Finovate, is how
I got started going to local events

{{00:06:20}}
and then traveling a bit, when I first
got into FinTech,  and the community

{{00:06:25}}
is really welcoming, even if you don't
know what you want to work on yet, but

{{00:06:28}}
you just know that there's opportunity
there and you want to learn, if you

{{00:06:30}}
do know what you want to work on.

{{00:06:32}}
That's great too.

It's true when they say that every
company is a FinTech company, right.

And it's often intimidating if
you are not, if you don't have a

FinTech background to enter the
industry, but actually I think,

and I hope many people with diverse
backgrounds, like an epidemiologist,

Because without firsthand experience
of a world that  lot of true fintechs

don't see, it's, it's really hard to
build products and cater for them.

So if you look at some of the more
successful,  you know, clients of

ours, people, as I brought up the
Alzheimer's example earlier, one of

In other examples, we can, we
can see that people are coming

And so the advice would be, you know,
don't be scared to start something right.

And stick to your passion because there
are people out there that would be.

So we didn't really raise founders only
from angel investors here and there.

there was never a target and we've been
profitable since we started the company.

But if there's one advice I have is be
very careful with bringing on investors.

You know, you don't have to raise
money don't, you don't have to.

There's a way to make
it work without funding.

I think for me, I had
a pretty good network.

Before I came into the startup space,
you know, infinite financial services

and, you know, a lot of my friends
and professional organizations, but I

think what I didn't understand is they
think Donald Rumsfeld said this, like

there's a known unknowns and unknown
unknowns and coming into the startup.

There's like the, actually he didn't say.

Somebody else said it before, but
he made it popular, but he did

So to clarify,  the startup world
is a lot of unknown unknowns, right?

So what I would have done a little bit
more is build an even more strategic

advisory team around me, of senior
folks or people that have been through

it because you've been through, you're
going to go through so many ups and

downs in the fires of the startup world,
because you're literally taking something

So that whole ideation to early
build, to prototype, to creating

strategic partnerships, to, you know,
creating the platform technology-wise

As a founder and especially CEO as a
founder, you're kind of like trying

to juggle all of these things and move
all the like seven balls down the road.

And so it's super difficult to do
that and do a well all the time.

But  if you have guidance, you know, from
folks that have been through it and say,

Hey, in this moment, you may need to focus
on this a little bit more in this moment.

And in these that guidance sometimes
can be introductions to other people in

can you provide some insight
to Castleigh to other folks.

And I've for that aspect, I've tried
to give back myself and pay it forward.

So I try to help ideation or earlier
founders as well think through some

of their challenges as they go from
corporate over into the startup side.

What to prepare for how to think about it.

Sometimes you say, Hey, this
thing not knowing will take

So there's again, a lot
of unknown, unknowns.

So, how do you minimize some of those
as much as you can obviously say you can

business plan it out, but the business
plan is kind of like the guardrails and

then you get into the actual building part
and now you get your hands dirty, right?

So I think from a startup standpoint,
again, depending on what role you

are in a startup, you know, senior
tech leader, kind of CEO, whatever

chief marketing officer, you're
going to play different roles.

You know, at the, kind of at
the CEO level, you're just

You know, you're trying to
put out fire drills, you're

You're trying to, you know, get
to the customers or, you know, get

But at the end of the day, the
biggest part for whatever platform

startup you're working is what's
the value you're providing.

If the value you're providing
is undeniable , you'll deliver.

But you have to make sure
that that is clearly defined

So you have to be open to that
again, why I went from one startup

and pivoted to another, because
that value prop changed over time.

So that's something that you have to be
open to, but as much as you can prepare

as much as you can build that, you know,
strategic advisory board and just absorb

because this is a different like I said,
different animal than the corporate world.

And so in the corporate
world is a lot of structure.

But there's a lot, again, this department
does this, this one specializes in this.

You're like it legal
HR, you know, janitor.

And so there's a lot of just
like, get everything done, you

Because you may not be able to do
20 things in one day, but maybe

But those six things have to
be the most impactful of the

So learning how to prioritize,
shifting focuses quickly as

So again, it's a little bit of irony
to be like, you have to be able to

Expert Insight

Fintech startups have increased by 72% between 2018-2020, which is a strong indicator that development will only continue to rise. 
But how do you get started in fintech, and what are the most important aspects to be aware of.
Four Fintech startup founders offer their thoughts on what they would have liked to know if they could go back in time.

Bolun Li

CEO and Founder  

thumbnail_David-Nohe-e1580737962177.jpg

xsmall_David-Nohe-e1580737962177.jpg

David-Nohe-e1580737962177.jpg

David Nohe

CEO  

large_Jehan Luth.png

medium_Jehan Luth.png

small_Jehan Luth.png

thumbnail_Jehan Luth.png

xlarge_Jehan Luth.png

xsmall_Jehan Luth.png

Jehan Luth.png

Jehan Luth 

small_Castleigh Johnson.jfif

thumbnail_Castleigh Johnson.jfif

xsmall_Castleigh Johnson.jfif

Castleigh Johnson.jfif

Castleigh Johnson

CEO 

You don't need a background in Fintech to establish a Fintech company. Luth, a former epidemiologist, believes that people from diverse backgrounds may create successful Fintech solutions.

Jehan Luth

There may be a method to make it work without borrowing money. Li highlights the importance of not falling into too much debt for starting your business.

The use of a strategic advisory team's experience would help to reduce the unknowns. Johnson stresses the need for new founders to define the value of the product or service they're offering.

Going to local events and getting to know the community better, according to Nohe, is an excellent place to start.