Product Design Lead · 2020–2022
Mkobo Bank — building a digital bank Nigeria's underbanked could trust.
Led design and brand for a digital microfinance bank from zero — from research and rebrand through MVP launch, onboarding rescue, and 40,000 accounts in year one.
Role
Product Design Lead — managed 2 product designers + 1 brand designer
Scope
Brand revitalization, product discovery, MVP design, design system
Context
Nigeria's banking sector sits on a $9 billion value pool, yet a majority of consumers remain underserved — limited rural access, affordability barriers, and poor experiences compound across the board. Mkobo Microfinance Bank set out to go digital-first, building a bank for economically active and salary-earning Nigerians.
I led the design team through rebrand, discovery, and MVP delivery — establishing the design system Mkobo still runs on today.
Rebranding for consistency & usability
The existing Mkobo mark read informal and inconsistent across touchpoints. I led a full identity revitalization — a bridge-form mark suggesting connection and reliability — and rebuilt the visual system used across app, email, and internal dashboards.
Research
We ran competitive analysis and research across existing and potential customers to validate our product direction and prioritize features.
30 Existing Customers
Mkobo account holders · own a smartphone
20 Potential Customers
Ages 20–60 · employed or self-employed · own a bank account & smartphone
84%
had used a mobile banking app before
87%
don't have access to reliable credit facilities
84%
prioritize trust & reliability over features or rates
98%
prioritize fund safety above all else
NO
Nkechi Ogbonna
26 · Office Admin · Lagos, Nigeria
Part-time student at the University of Lagos, working as an office administrator at an insurance company. Dedicated and goal-driven — earns ₦80,000 monthly.
Goals & needs
- Manage her finances and finish her degree
- Wants a financial partner for urgent needs
"I come from a traditional Igbo family. I'd like to give them the world — they've been the backbone of my existence."
AG
Adeola Gbadamosi
29 · Security Personnel · Lagos
Moved to Lagos from Osun State for a better life. Works security at Halogen Securities, married with 2 kids, and is working his way up to increase his income.
Goals & needs
- Needs a financial support partner
- Needs a better job to increase earnings
"I moved to Lagos for a better life. I'm married with 2 kids and want to provide for them uninterruptedly."
Defining the MVP
Must have
Account opening, onboarding, send & receive money, earned wage access, transaction history, KYC.
Nice to have
Savings, pay bills, payment links, request money, aggregated balance.
Feature interest by request volume
Send & Receive Money23.8%
The problem after launch
Post-MVP, sign-ups dropped off before reaching value. Follow-up calls, surveys and Mixpanel behavioural data on 100 failed sign-ups showed users abandoning the flow at the ID upload screen — the process felt overwhelming and time-consuming, and users wanted to see value before completing full KYC.
32%
Reached ID upload
76% drop here — the cliff
Key takeaway
"Designing for compliance is not enough; how users experience compliance determines whether they stay or drop off."
Reducing drop-offs — research
Methods
Follow-up calls
Surveys
Behavioural data via Mixpanel
100
failed / uncompleted sign-ups analyzed
Key findings
Users noted the process was overwhelming and time-consuming.
Core insight
- Users wanted to get started quickly
- Trust needed to be built progressively
- Immediate value mattered more than full completion
The fix
1. Progressive onboarding
Broke KYC into smaller steps, collecting information gradually instead of upfront.
2. Tiered access
Users could start transacting immediately at limited capacity, unlocking higher limits as they verified more.
3. Gamified progress
Progress indicators and milestones gave users a sense of achievement and reduced perceived effort.
90%+
of users preferred the new flow in usability testing
Impact
40K
accounts opened in year one
300%
increase in deposits within 1yr
3M+
monthly recurring transactions
4.8
★★★★★
App store rating
★★★★★
"Wow, this app is so reliable, I love it, so efficient. Thumbs up to Mkobo."
Stephanas Khobe
★★★★★
"Mkobo is very fast and good online banking, easy to use, good services."
Moses Uhar
★★★★★
"Excellent."
Okey Ajom
Beyond the app — employer & ops dashboards
Earned wage access needed an employer-facing side too. I designed the web dashboard HR teams use to manage staff, approve requests, and track spend against payroll — extending the design system from mobile to a data-dense desktop surface.
Next case study
Tida Retail →
