Fatima Batool: Breaking Barriers

The story of Fatima Batool is one of hard work, and innovation. As a third-generation entrepreneur, she has spent her life honing her skills in family-owned FMCG and agro-commodities businesses across continents and countries, from the palm oil plantations of Indonesia to the rice fields of Pakistan. With her expertise in electronic business, employment relations, and international business, she has gained a global perspective on economic activity and a deep understanding of the challenges faced by internationally oriented organizations.

Fatima's commitment to improving the lives of those around her is evident in her launch of EZ Wage, a fintech service that aims to empower individuals in developing economies like Pakistan and Bangladesh. Drawing on the knowledge she gained from her Master's degree in International Business andBachelor's degree in Economics, she has applied her skills in credit risk assessment and strategic decision-making to make a meaningful impact in the lives of others.

As we navigate an ever-changing world of business, it is individuals like Fatima who give us hope for a brighter future. Her vision, leadership, and dedication to empowering others serve as a true inspiration in the modern world.

This month, for International Women’s Day, we speak with the entrepreneur in an exclusive interview for Machinelab about the impact of fintech, the challenges of being a woman in a male-dominated space and much more…

What inspired you to start EZWage, and how did your background in FMCG and agro-commodities businesses contribute to your decision to launch a financial wellness platform?

After spending almost a decade studying and working in Australia/New Zealand, I noticed the sheer contrast between developed and emerging markets in terms of financial inclusion and women empowerment. After extensive discussions with several mentors, I learned about the earned wage access model and decided to implement it across the South Asia/Southeast Asia region with my application EZ Wage, as a starting point towards eventually developing a holistic regional financial wellness platform.

Can you describe how EZ Wage works, and how it aims to empower marginalized communities, especially women inPakistan, Bangladesh, KSA, and Indonesia?

My passion undeniably lies in providing relief to the marginalized sectors of society, especially women in developing nations. Hiring employees across developed and emerging markets has made me truly understand the day-to-day challenges faced by the employees. In developed countries likeAustralia, the majority of people have access to formal credit, and the process is far less complicated as compared to Pakistan, Bangladesh and Indonesia. The statistics pointing towards women who are financially independent and literate are particularly appalling and made me brainstorm about services and products designed specifically to elevate their socio-economic position. After extensive discussions with my mentors, I narrowed my focus on an app providing earned wage access, more commonly known as EWA (earned wage access); a next-generation employee benefit that would allow employees to withdraw their earned salaries before the actual payday to cater to their unexpected expenses instead of falling in the debt spiral propagated by loan sharks.

How do you see financial inclusion and women empowerment as interconnected issues, and what role can fintech play in addressing them?

I feel the biggest hurdle in the way of utopian financial independence is the lack of financial literacy in emerging markets. Pair that with the inaccessibility to formal credit, and the skewed ratio of male to female employees in developing markets and you have the makings of financial distress.

It is a challenge to aid the community in becoming financially independent when the vast majority is still under-banked especially women in Pakistan. I aim to make the marginalized and the underbanked more financially literate before introducing the world of financial tools to them. EZ Wage’s app has been designed keeping in mind these very little things. Access to your own hard-earned money should be as simple as three swipes on your phone app, if not easier and I aim to do just that!

What are some of the biggest challenges that you have faced while developing and launching EZ Wage, and how did you overcome them?

Covid and the subsequent lockdowns have altered business models in different ways over the past few years. For one, it has increased the reliance on digital payment providers for even the most basic of payments such as utility bills. It has also led to growing enablement for digital payments, prevalent internet and smartphone penetration, consumer preferences for social media and thriving e- commerce, all of which poise as ideal backgrounds for fintech payment providers.

How do you ensure that EZ Wage is accessible and relevant to the needs of the communities you are serving, especially those who may not have much experience with formal financial systems?

The target audience for this offering includes lower to middle income employees across the region, who have a bank account or an e-wallet. A significant proportion of this demographic tends to live paycheck to paycheck and is unable to meet unexpected expenses that may arise during the month. This makes EWA a highly appealing offering for these individuals, most of whom do not have easy access to formal credit, as their alternatives include borrowing from friends/family or easy targets for loan sharks charging up to 400%interest rate in countries like Indonesia – employees then fall in to the debt cycle.

 The service EZ Wage provides matters. Hence why I decided to implement the earned wage access model (EWA)across the South Asia/Southeast Asia region as a starting point towards eventually developing a holistic regional financial wellness platform. EWA is a tremendous double-benefit model, empowering employees to access their salaries on-demand any time before payday and yielding invaluable analytical insights for the employer. EWA is an innovation solution that addresses the pressing need of low to mid-income employees of having access to their accrued earnings on a real-time basis. EZWage aims to disburse payments to the end beneficiaries (the employees) in realtime as per their needs, not only leading to digitization of payments in the region but also catering to financial emergencies faced by the working population.

What advice would you give to women who are interested in starting a fintech company, especially in emerging markets?

My journey so far has been a curveball of learning and un-learning. Designing a platform from scratch with my team and then finding potential clients for it has taught me the value of maintaining a healthy work culture that allows all members of the team to brainstorm and bring their innovative ideas to the table. A product or service that has streamlined ideas is better than one that focuses on a single crude fixated idea.

What are your plans for the future of EZ Wage?

For now I am focusing all my time and energies on EZ Wage and establishing it in the South Asian region but seeing how it has empowered women in the developing economies and led to increased financial literacy, freedom and inclusion for them, has spurred me to work for this cause and I will probably be heading down the path of female empowerment for my future endeavors. My aim is to aid the working class in managing their finances better and avoid interest-laden loans. These are not just names and clients tome and my team. We understand that these are the lives and everyday dreams of our end users and we are honored to be considered a trusted portal for the people we serve.

What do you see as the biggest opportunities and challenges facing women in leadership roles in fintech, and what do you believe needs to happen to create a more equitable and inclusive industry?

Being female-founded, a unique differentiator for EZ Wage is the fact that it particularly focuses on women empowerment and financial inclusion. Our Sales team consciously targets businesses that are women-led and we run campaigns that are specifically tailored towards women (e.g., lower transaction fees for women). The ultimate aim is to create not only financial literacy for women but also to make them financially independent so they can take control of their lives.

What are some of the advantages that you believe women bring to leadership roles, particularly in male-dominated industries like finance and technology?

Dream big. Then work hard to actualize those dreams.Remember the fintech market is dynamic and constantly evolving on a global scale. It is expanding coupled with a diversity of funding sources, opportunity for businesses and geographic range. These innovations are revolutionary in nature; hence they hold the key to modify and restructure existing financial services, pushing developing economies to meet global expectations. This is why it has become increasingly important for female founders to focus on both the opportunities provided by upcoming financial technologies and their risks too so keep your minds open to innovation and criticism both. For women to actualize financial security, they must first fully embrace the term financial independence, which refers to their ability to make informed financial decisions regarding their money. This includes monetary choices to save, spend as well as to invest money as considered best by these women. Financial independence naturally negates the patriarchal assumption of men controlling women’s hard-earned money and is hence a topic of debate within developing economies.

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