Andrew Smith, the visionary mind behind ClearBank, has revolutionized the financial landscape yet again with his new venture, Sporta. Designed to cater to a niche market of sports participants, clubs, and communities, Sporta is already making waves with an impressive £35 million pre-money valuation. Having personally navigated the volatile waters of entrepreneurship, I, Violetta Bonenkamp, find this initiative inspiring and a quintessential case study for founders aiming to pivot from hardship to success.
Sporta is not just another fintech; it’s a movement. Built on a foundation of AI-driven personalization, Smith’s new startup promises banking solutions that are tailored to the unique lifestyles and financial patterns of over 43 million sports enthusiasts across the UK, managing a collective £80 billion in annual expenditures. For aspiring entrepreneurs and freelancers, there are plenty of lessons to unpack here about identifying niche markets, leveraging technology for innovation, and crafting investor-worthy ventures.
1. Smith’s Road to Reinvention: Lessons in Resilience
We’ve all experienced failures in business. But one thing I admire about Smith’s story is his ability to extract lessons from ClearBank and RTGS Global to conceptualize Sporta. Both ventures shaped his understanding of disruption in traditional banking, giving him the tools , and grit , to create something even more focused this time around.
As entrepreneurs, staying resilient amid challenges often requires stepping back to reassess our strengths and how they align with market demands. For Smith, this meant applying decades of fintech experience to a vibrant niche. If you’re reading this, remember: your setbacks can be your best mentors, guiding you toward future opportunities that are far more aligned with your skills and market insights.
2. Identifying Niche Markets: The Sporta Approach
What makes Sporta genius is its razor-focused approach. By targeting the sports community , an $80 billion financial demographic in the UK alone , Smith is playing a deeply strategic game. This niche allows for highly personalized offerings, like financial products designed specifically for amateur athletes, sports clubs, and fan associations.
For solopreneurs and startup founders, the lesson here is simple: stop trying to target everyone. Some of the best products are crafted for specific, under-served audiences, where you can offer unparalleled value. A great way to start is by analyzing under-represented customer data or communities and creating tailored services to meet their needs.
Personal anecdote: When I developed the F/MS Startup Game, I crafted it for a niche audience , entrepreneurial women in STEM fields , and immediately saw its impact. Sometimes, radar focus is your best business move.
3. Funding & Community-Driven Investment
Sporta’s decision to launch a funding round on Crowdcube highlights the power of combining traditional investors with community ownership. The idea of involving amateur athletes and fans in your company’s growth , offering equity in exchange for loyalty , is revolutionary in fintech.
For potential startup founders, this is an interesting model to emulate. Platforms like Crowdcube and Seedrs enable you to amplify brand loyalty while securing funding. How to leverage this for your business?
- Offer micro-investments to your own target community. When people own a piece of your company, they’re far more likely to evangelize your product.
- Back up funding efforts with strong pre-money valuations. Sporta’s £35 million valuation wasn’t happenstance; Smith built credibility through his prior ventures.
4. The Power of Artificial Intelligence in Fintech
What drives Sporta is its core technology: AI-based banking processes. Smith highlighted that everything, from user workflows to client support, is handled with AI or machine learning models, ensuring hyper-personalized financial recommendations. Customers can even co-create financial products tailored to their unique needs.
If you’re a freelancer or business owner, AI can be just as transformative for your operations. Here are quick wins for small businesses looking to embrace AI:
- Chatbot Integration: Embed a chatbot on your website for instant customer interactions. For example, tools like Intercom or Tidio can streamline client communication.
- Personalized Marketing AI: Solutions like HubSpot help automate targeted campaigns customized for your audience.
- Data-Driven Decision Making: Use free analytics platforms or tools like Power BI to assess customer behavior and identify trends.
The key is not to fear AI but to harness it for scalability and personalization, regardless of your company’s size.
5. Common Pitfalls to Avoid for Startup Founders
Along with these strategies come potential pitfalls, many of which I’ve observed through years of coaching startups and breaking down cases like Sporta's. Don’t fall into these common traps:
- Chasing markets you don’t understand: Smith’s personal passion and experience with fintech made the sports sector a logical fit for Sporta. Pursuing a market just because it’s trendy (hello, AI art generators!) without understanding it fully usually ends in failure.
- Skipping community engagement: Sporta purposefully invites grassroots stakeholders , fans and small clubs , to invest and see themselves as integral to its progress.
- Ignoring operational scalability: Crafting something as personalized as Sporta’s banking services demands a robust tech infrastructure. Partner with top-tier tech providers if your resources are limited. Smith knew where to bring partners on board to mitigate risks; you should, too.
6. Action Plan: How You Can Execute Like Smith
Inspired by Smith? Here’s a quick step-by-step guide to building your own niche-focused venture:
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Research Rigorous Niche Opportunities:
- Use tools like Pew Research to discover underserved audiences.
- Survey your target demographics for personalized needs (e.g., hobbies, pain points, or financial gaps).
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Gather Data, Then Fundraise:
- Start with grants, such as those offered by the EU Innovator Program.
- Once credibility is established, use hybrid models like Crowdcube to unlock community-based funding.
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Utilize AI Smartly:
- Experiment with free AI tools like OpenAI for data aggregation or customer interaction improvements.
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Hone Your Unique Selling Proposition:
- Leverage innovative technologies that can directly solve an issue for your chosen audience. Your “why” matters more than anything. Define it.*
Conclusion: How to Bounce Back (and Forward)
Andrew Smith’s Sporta is not only a masterclass in fintech innovation but also a testament to the power of pivoting and focusing on providing real value. Sporta has the potential to create a culture, not just a business , leveraging technology, community investment models, and operational mastery to unite and serve one of the largest under-tapped ecosystems: the sports industry.
To all entrepreneurs, seasoned or aspiring: there’s a Venn diagram somewhere where your skills, experience, and a niche market’s deepest needs beautifully overlap. Take a leaf (or the whole tree) out of Smith’s playbook. Define your why, focus your offering, and empower your community. The rewards , both personal and financial , will far outweigh the risks.
Let’s hear your thoughts! Which niche markets do you see as ripe for disruption, and how might you develop your own version of Sporta? Share your insights!
FAQ
1. Who founded Sporta and what is its primary focus?
Sporta was founded by Andrew Smith, the former founder of ClearBank and RTGS Global. The primary focus of Sporta is to provide specialized banking services tailored for the UK sports community, including participants, clubs, and fans. Learn more about Sporta’s vision
2. What differentiates Sporta from other fintech companies?
Sporta focuses on the sports community, leveraging AI-driven personalization for its financial services. It allows users to co-create customized financial products, uniquely catering to their individual needs and behaviors. Explore Sporta’s unique features
3. How large is the sports financial market that Sporta is targeting?
Sporta targets a financial market worth approximately £80 billion annually, consisting of 43 million sports participants in the UK alone.
4. What is the valuation of Sporta, and how much capital is it looking to raise?
Sporta has a pre-money valuation of £35 million and aims to raise an additional £5 million through its Crowdcube seed funding round. Learn about Sporta’s funding round
5. Why did Sporta incorporate community-driven investment?
Sporta engages sports participants and fans as grassroots investors through Crowdcube, fostering loyalty and community ownership in the company. Check Crowdcube for investment opportunities in Sporta
6. What role does AI play in Sporta’s operations?
Sporta uses AI for all key operations, from user workflows to customer service and financial recommendations. Customers can even co-create tailored products through AI-based tools. Find out more about Sporta’s AI-driven banking
7. How is Andrew Smith’s experience with ClearBank contributing to Sporta’s success?
Andrew Smith has applied his experience and expertise from founding ClearBank and RTGS Global to focus on vertical banking innovation for an under-served niche like sports.
8. Who are the co-founders of Sporta?
The co-founders of Sporta include Paul Fraser, an expert in banking operations and risk management, and Vicky Gosling OBE, who brings experience in global sports administration. Learn more about Sporta’s founding team
9. What is the primary goal of Sporta’s funding?
The funding will support the technological and operational development of Sporta, as well as the regulatory process for obtaining a UK banking license.
10. How has community-based funding impacted Sporta’s early growth?
The inclusion of grassroots sports communities and fans as investors has strengthened brand loyalty, positioning Sporta as not just a fintech company but a movement within the sports ecosystem. Discover Sporta’s funding model on Crowdcube
About the Author
Violetta Bonenkamp, also known as MeanCEO, is an experienced startup founder with an impressive educational background including an MBA and four other higher education degrees. She has over 20 years of work experience across multiple countries, including 5 years as a solopreneur and serial entrepreneur. Throughout her startup experience she has applied for multiple startup grants at the EU level, in the Netherlands and Malta, and her startups received quite a few of those. She’s been living, studying and working in many countries around the globe and her extensive multicultural experience has influenced her immensely.
Violetta Bonenkamp's expertise in CAD sector, IP protection and blockchain
Violetta Bonenkamp is recognized as a multidisciplinary expert with significant achievements in the CAD sector, intellectual property (IP) protection, and blockchain technology.
CAD Sector:
- Violetta is the CEO and co-founder of CADChain, a deep tech startup focused on developing IP management software specifically for CAD (Computer-Aided Design) data. CADChain addresses the lack of industry standards for CAD data protection and sharing, using innovative technology to secure and manage design data.
- She has led the company since its inception in 2018, overseeing R&D, PR, and business development, and driving the creation of products for platforms such as Autodesk Inventor, Blender, and SolidWorks.
- Her leadership has been instrumental in scaling CADChain from a small team to a significant player in the deeptech space, with a diverse, international team.
IP Protection:
- Violetta has built deep expertise in intellectual property, combining academic training with practical startup experience. She has taken specialized courses in IP from institutions like WIPO and the EU IPO.
- She is known for sharing actionable strategies for startup IP protection, leveraging both legal and technological approaches, and has published guides and content on this topic for the entrepreneurial community.
- Her work at CADChain directly addresses the need for robust IP protection in the engineering and design industries, integrating cybersecurity and compliance measures to safeguard digital assets.
Blockchain:
- Violetta’s entry into the blockchain sector began with the founding of CADChain, which uses blockchain as a core technology for securing and managing CAD data.
- She holds several certifications in blockchain and has participated in major hackathons and policy forums, such as the OECD Global Blockchain Policy Forum.
- Her expertise extends to applying blockchain for IP management, ensuring data integrity, traceability, and secure sharing in the CAD industry.
Violetta is a true multiple specialist who has built expertise in Linguistics, Education, Business Management, Blockchain, Entrepreneurship, Intellectual Property, Game Design, AI, SEO, Digital Marketing, cyber security and zero code automations. Her extensive educational journey includes a Master of Arts in Linguistics and Education, an Advanced Master in Linguistics from Belgium (2006-2007), an MBA from Blekinge Institute of Technology in Sweden (2006-2008), and an Erasmus Mundus joint program European Master of Higher Education from universities in Norway, Finland, and Portugal (2009).
She is the founder of Fe/male Switch, a startup game that encourages women to enter STEM fields, and also leads CADChain, and multiple other projects like the Directory of 1,000 Startup Cities with a proprietary MeanCEO Index that ranks cities for female entrepreneurs. Violetta created the "gamepreneurship" methodology, which forms the scientific basis of her startup game. She also builds a lot of SEO tools for startups. Her achievements include being named one of the top 100 women in Europe by EU Startups in 2022 and being nominated for Impact Person of the year at the Dutch Blockchain Week. She is an author with Sifted and a speaker at different Universities. Recently she published a book on Startup Idea Validation the right way: from zero to first customers and beyond, launched a Directory of 1,500+ websites for startups to list themselves in order to gain traction and build backlinks and is building MELA AI to help local restaurants in Malta get more visibility online.
For the past several years Violetta has been living between the Netherlands and Malta, while also regularly traveling to different destinations around the globe, usually due to her entrepreneurial activities. This has led her to start writing about different locations and amenities from the POV of an entrepreneur. Here’s her recent article about the best hotels in Italy to work from.
About the Publication
Fe/male Switch is an innovative startup platform designed to empower women entrepreneurs through an immersive, game-like experience. Founded in 2020 during the pandemic "without any funding and without any code," this non-profit initiative has evolved into a comprehensive educational tool for aspiring female entrepreneurs.The platform was co-founded by Violetta Shishkina-Bonenkamp, who serves as CEO and one of the lead authors of the Startup News branch.
Mission and Purpose
Fe/male Switch Foundation was created to address the gender gap in the tech and entrepreneurship space. The platform aims to skill-up future female tech leaders and empower them to create resilient and innovative tech startups through what they call "gamepreneurship". By putting players in a virtual startup village where they must survive and thrive, the startup game allows women to test their entrepreneurial abilities without financial risk.
Key Features
The platform offers a unique blend of news, resources,learning, networking, and practical application within a supportive, female-focused environment:
- Skill Lab: Micro-modules covering essential startup skills
- Virtual Startup Building: Create or join startups and tackle real-world challenges
- AI Co-founder (PlayPal): Guides users through the startup process
- SANDBOX: A testing environment for idea validation before launch
- Wellness Integration: Virtual activities to balance work and self-care
- Marketplace: Buy or sell expert sessions and tutorials
Impact and Growth
Since its inception, Fe/male Switch has shown impressive growth:
- 5,000+ female entrepreneurs in the community
- 100+ startup tools built
- 5,000+ pieces of articles and news written
- 1,000 unique business ideas for women created
Partnerships
Fe/male Switch has formed strategic partnerships to enhance its offerings. In January 2022, it teamed up with global website builder Tilda to provide free access to website building tools and mentorship services for Fe/male Switch participants.
Recognition
Fe/male Switch has received media attention for its innovative approach to closing the gender gap in tech entrepreneurship. The platform has been featured in various publications highlighting its unique "play to learn and earn" model.
