As artificial intelligence (AI) reshapes Africa’s financial services landscape, South African fintech ProfitShare Partners (PSP) is calling on the industry to shift its focus from potential to proof. The company is urging fintech innovators, investors, and regulators to adopt measurable, outcome-driven benchmarks that ensure AI genuinely expands access and impact, especially for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) excluded by legacy systems.
Andrew Maren, CEO and founder of ProfitShare Partners (PSP)
“There is a widening gap between what AI can do and what it is actually doing to serve real businesses,” says Andrew Maren, CEO and founder of ProfitShare Partners. “Too many solutions are optimised for hype or investor traction. It is time to ask: who is the end-user, and what problem are we really solving?”
Making AI accountable to outcomes
PSP’s call comes as the company continues to scale its own AI-enabled funding model, which provides fast, flexible capital to SMEs with valid contracts but limited access to credit. Since 2017, ProfitShare Partners has deployed over R1.2bn to more than 90% Black-owned businesses, using AI to assess behavioural risk, verify deal readiness, and unlock capital in near real-time.
“Our AI does not predict stock trends or optimise ads. It helps us decide whether an SME with a legitimate purchase order can be trusted to deliver, and then helps us fund them in days, not months,” explains Maren.
Rather than replacing human judgment, PSP uses AI to enhance operational scale, reduce bias, and increase the speed of funding decisions. But, Maren warns, too many systems are being built in isolation from the markets they aim to serve. “AI trained on irrelevant data or designed around first-world assumptions will not solve Africa’s access problem. In fact, it may reinforce it. That is why we believe in setting practical benchmarks like jobs created, businesses scaled, and contracts fulfilled. These are the metrics that matter.”
Calling the fintech sector to account
With AI dominating the business agenda this year, Maren says the conversation must now move beyond capability and toward credibility. “From predictive analytics to automated decisioning, we are seeing AI embedded into nearly every fintech pitch deck. But what we are not seeing often enough are results that justify the narrative. Inclusion cannot remain a marketing term. It must be measured,” he says.
PSP is calling for:
- Greater transparency in how AI models assess risk and recommend funding;
- Standardised reporting on how AI tools improve access, reduce exclusion, and support underserved SMEs;
- A sector-wide commitment to localising data inputs and validation frameworks to reflect African market realities.
“Everyone is talking about ethics, but we need to translate that into execution. If your AI helps one SME win one contract that puts food on the table and builds a track record, that is more powerful than any abstract benchmark of potential,” adds Maren.
Building trust, not just tech
PSP’s position aligns with a growing call in the market for trust-first innovation. The company has advocated consistently for fintech that prioritises people, purpose, and provable results over speculation and scale for its own sake.
“Our vision is simple: build the tools that help entrepreneurs succeed. Let AI be part of that but let it be judged by what it enables on the ground and not just what it promises in theory,” Maren concludes.
