The source of the problem

The history of most fintech ventures begins with an innovative idea for a new system of money management, money spending, money lending, and money transferring – anything to do with money. This particular idea must be adequately addressed, so an appropriate product needs to be developed. After the launch success, market demand for the product gradually increases. Obviously, the bigger the success is, the faster the demand rises.

Suppose you are a fintech CEO and the growth of your start-up is so fast that you need to augment your staff. First, congratulations on your roaring success. But now, it is high time you decide what to do with this issue. You can choose from the following three options:

Plan A: Hire new workers

This appears to be the most obvious solution. Your company's growth in the number of clients means heavier workload for you HR departments. However, before a new person joins your company, your HR needs to spend long hours on-boarding and training them. This is crucial, especially if you want to make sure that you can trust and rely on your new recruit. What is more, usually one new person is not enough and you need to on-board and train a whole new team. By doing this you realise that the world of financial technology is so fast that you simply have no time for complex recruitment processes.

Plan B: Outsource a part of your work

Once you have decided against spending time and money for head-hunting, the most probable plan B is outsourcing. Needless to say that outsourcing is in its heyday. It is a cost-effective and time-saving solution – compared to hiring new staff – so no wonder many companies choose to augment their personnel through it.

However, the fintech sector is very specific. It is important that the cost is reasonable and time is saved, but security and confidentiality are of paramount importance. The former because of the whole financial industry‘s characteristics, where security of information is the key. The latter because of the very start-up nature of fintech, whereby innovative ideas and know-how have to be kept a secret. If your partner is located in a distant country, it may take time to work out bilateral confidence due to limited possibilities of face-to-face meetings.

Additionally, working across continents brings the problem of different time zones. If the working hours do not overlap, your partner may not be able to react to your requests immediately, which is crucial in fast-paced FinTech industry. Luckily, this plan B is not the end of the list, and you still have option C to choose.

Plan C: Enter into a nearshore partnership

A nearshore partnership merges all advantages of an in-house team and outsourcing approach. Your time, and finances, are saved and the safety and secrecy is protected (e.g. with a non-disclosure agreement). If the country is a member of the EU, they will follow similar legislation and you will be protected by European law.

Also, it is often that you feel like your nearshoring partner is a part of the in-house team, as there is no time zone difference compared to offshore and distant countries. This allows your managers to organise meetings at their convenience and keep fingers on the pulse of the whole project. A neighbouring location also enables you and your partner to visit each other regularly and develop the bond of mutual trust and with cultural and social similarities, there is a solid foundation for that.

The challenge of heavy workload – an award

The fact that you face heavy workload due to increasing interest in your service can make you feel self-satisfied. Not only does it mean that your business flourishes, but it also implies that it is you (not your competitors) who prosper. Having a heavy workload in a business is a problem that every fintech CEO would like to have, and nearshoring appears to be the solution they are searching for.