Fintech Platform Sycamore Invests in 24/7 Human Support After Processing N100bn in Transactions

Bennett Oghifo

Nigerian fintech platform Sycamore has launched round-the-clock human customer support across all its financial services, marking a strategic shift as the company scales operations, following a year in which it said they processed over N100 billion in transactions.

The service, which became operational this week, guarantees two-minute response times for live chat and one-hour turnaround for email inquiries. Human agents are now available 24/7 through multiple channels, including phone, WhatsApp, and social media, to handle loan applications, investment portfolio queries, and multi-currency wallet transactions, the company said in a statement.

The move comes as data from the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission reveals mounting consumer dissatisfaction in Nigeria’s fintech sector. Between March and August 2025, banking and fintech accounted for over 4,600 consumer complaints, with fintech recording 1,442 cases spanning transaction disputes, digital lending issues, and investment product challenges.

Babatunde Akin-Moses, Chief Executive Officer of Sycamore Group, said the decision reflects the operational demands of managing complex financial products across different time zones and customer schedules.

“Financial decisions don’t respect business hours,” Akin-Moses said. “A customer evaluating an investment opportunity at midnight or managing currency exposure during market volatility needs access to knowledgeable professionals who can provide context and help them make informed decisions. We’ve built our service model around that reality.”

The platform processed over N100 billion in transactions for approximately 400,000 customers across salary loans, business financing, investments, asset portfolios, and multi-currency wallets in 2025. Sycamore Group operates under dual regulatory frameworks, holding both Securities and Exchange Commission licensing for fund and portfolio management and a license for lending operations.
Mojisola Fagbohunlu, Head of Marketing at Sycamore, described the development as recognition of an industry inflection point where service requirements have evolved beyond what automated systems can deliver.

“The industry has reached an inflection point,” Fagbohunlu said. “Customers are managing increasingly complex financial products through their phones. They’re making decisions about loans that affect their businesses, investments that determine their financial futures, and currency choices that protect their purchasing power. These decisions require human insight, especially when questions arise outside traditional banking hours.”

The operational investment required to staff human agents around the clock is substantial, but Akin-Moses argues the economics are justified when product complexity increases, and significant value can be created during weekends and off-peak hours.

“Automated systems work well for straightforward transactions,” he said. “But when someone needs to understand how a multi-currency wallet protects against devaluation, or which investment vehicle aligns with their risk tolerance, that conversation requires human expertise.”

The initiative positions Sycamore against the prevailing industry trend of increased automation as platforms scale. Most fintech companies have opted to reduce support costs through chatbots and automated response systems as their user bases expand.

The launch coincides with heightened regulatory focus on consumer protection in Nigeria’s financial technology sector. The FCCPC issued comprehensive Digital Lending Regulations in September 2025 to address transparency, data privacy, and customer treatment standards, while the Central Bank of Nigeria has intensified scrutiny of service delivery across digital finance platforms.

For Sycamore, the move represents a strategic bet that service quality and round-the-clock availability will become key differentiators as Nigeria’s fintech sector matures beyond its early growth phase. The company is monitoring resolution times, customer satisfaction scores, and product adoption rates to evaluate the initiative’s impact.

“We’re seeing significant engagement during non-business hours, especially as we go borderless,” Fagbohunlu said. “People are making financial decisions when it’s convenient for them, not when banks are open. That’s the whole promise of digital finance. We’re simply ensuring the service delivery matches that promise.”