What I Wish I Knew Before Starting a Fintech Company
By Vitalii Bulynin
Starting a fintech company is exciting because every day feels like an opportunity to build something better than what already exists, challenging the existing norms. It’s also humbling.
When we launched Versus Trade, we entered one of the world’s most competitive industries. Hundreds of companies were already competing for the same customers, often with similar products and pricing. Looking back, there are a few lessons I wish I had understood from the very beginning. They would have saved us time, helped us make better decisions faster, and reinforced what truly matters when building a fintech business.
Don’t start with the product. Start with the problem.
Like many entrepreneurs, together with my Co-Founder, I initially spent a lot of time thinking about what we wanted to build.
The better question turned out to be: What problem are users still trying to solve?
Before launching the brand, we spoke extensively with traders, partners, and industry professionals across multiple local markets. Those conversations completely changed our perspective. Traders wanted a faster, more transparent experience, greater flexibility, and products that reflected how modern markets actually behave, not yet another platform.
Those insights ultimately shaped our vision, from providing access to more than 200 trading instruments to developing proprietary products like Versus Pairs, allowing traders to connect with the product on a more personal level. More importantly, they taught me that genuine innovation starts by listening.
Speed is about removing friction
One misconception I had early on was believing that growth comes from constantly adding new features. Today, I think the opposite is often true.
The biggest improvements usually come from making existing experiences simpler. Whether it’s reducing onboarding time, improving execution, or making customer support easier to reach, every unnecessary step you remove creates value for the customer.
In fintech, trust is often built through convenience. The easier you make it for people to interact with your business, the more likely they are to stay.
Your biggest job eventually becomes building the team, not the product.
One lesson every founder eventually learns is that you cannot scale by remaining involved in every decision. Early-stage companies naturally depend on founders solving problems personally. Eventually, however, that approach becomes the bottleneck.
One of the most valuable decisions we made at Versus Trade was investing in people who brought expertise we didn’t have ourselves. Giving talented people ownership doesn’t reduce quality but usually improves it. As the company grows, leadership becomes less about making every decision and more about creating an environment where great decisions can happen without you.
Growth is a mindset, not a milestone.
Perhaps the biggest lesson entrepreneurship has taught me is that there is no point where you’ve “figured it out.” Markets evolve. Customer expectations change. Technology constantly raises the standard.
The companies that continue growing aren’t necessarily the ones with the best initial idea. They’re the ones willing to challenge their own assumptions, adapt quickly, and keep learning long after launch day.
If I could give one piece of advice to anyone starting a fintech company today, it would be this: don’t become too attached to your first solution. Stay attached to the problem you’re solving instead. Your product will evolve, your strategy will change, and your market will surprise you. The businesses that last are the ones that keep listening, keep improving, and never stop adapting.
Author Bio: Vitalii Bulynin is the Co-Founder and CEO of Versus Trade, an award-winning CFD broker. With more than 20 years of experience in financial markets, he has traded professionally, managed multi-million-dollar trading portfolios, and now leads the company’s strategy, product innovation, and global expansion. His work focuses on building trader-centric financial products and scaling high-growth fintech businesses.