Building One of SA’s Most Successful Fintech’s - Matt Putman, iKhokha

Season 4 - Episode 26

Today I’m joined by Matt Putman, CEO and co-founder of iKhokha, one of South Africa’s most inspiring FinTech success stories. We kick things off by exploring how iKhokha pivoted from hardware to software, which led to a defining shift in product-market fit and reshaped the company’s future. From there, we cover the complexities of scaling, from attracting talent to raising investment—especially as a Durban-based business outside the major tech hubs.Matt also opens up about his own leadership evolution, the mindset shifts he’s had to embrace, and how he now approaches organizational design. Whether it's transitioning from a single-product to a multi-product company, entering new markets, or structuring his leadership team, Matt shares invaluable insights about unlocking scalability and learning to trust a skilled team.For anyone building and scaling a business, Matt’s stories, advice from his network, recommended books and practical wisdom offer an absolute goldmine of insights!

Too Long; Didn't Listen? Here's what to look for:

00:00 Introduction
05:03 iKhokha’s scale and what life for Matt is like
10:14 Matt’s drive and how he motivates his team
18:46 The founding story of iKhokha and finding product-market fit
34:17 What product-market fit looked like for iKhokha
38:22 Beginning the scaling journey
45:05 Challenges after finding profitability
48:05 Shifting from a problem-solving to a strategy mindset
50:28 Entering a phase of learning
56:15 The organisational design mindset shift you need to scale
01:08:24 Avoiding shiny object syndrome
01:15:21 How to keep entrepreneurship fun
01:22:43 Challenges in attracting investors and talent being based in Durban
01:37:50 What does the next 6 - 12 months look for iKhokha?
01:40:42 Advice to entrepreneurs at any stage of the journey

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