Experiencing Innovation Through Design: A Hands-On Design Thinking Workshop at PCPS College

On 27 January 2026, I joined 54 of my classmates, juniors and seniors at PCPS College for a two-hour interactive session titled “Exploring Fintech, Entrepreneurship, and Digital Payments.” The session was organized under the PCPS Opportunities initiative and led by Mr. Binay Khadka, Co-founder and CEO of Trust Bridge Capital and Co-founder of Khalti.

Walking into the college hall that morning, I expected a general talk about digital payments. What I experienced instead was a deep, honest, and inspiring conversation about entrepreneurship, innovation, and Nepal’s fintech journey. Very quickly, it became clear that this was not just about technology it was about mindset, resilience, and building trust in the digital world.

Learning 1: Entrepreneurship is built on resilience, not just ideas

One of the most powerful parts of the session was Mr. Khadka’s storytelling about Khalti’s journey. Rather than presenting only success, he openly shared the struggles gaining user trust, infrastructure limitations, regulatory challenges, and early uncertainties.

Listening to how Khalti grew from a simple idea into a market-leading digital payment platform made entrepreneurship feel real and human. I realized that success is rarely instant and that failure, persistence, and continuous improvement are essential parts of the journey. This shifted my mindset from fearing failure to seeing it as part of growth.

Learning 2: Understanding Nepal’s fintech ecosystem

Before this session, I viewed fintech mostly as mobile apps that make payments easier. During the session, I learned how fintech in Nepal is a complex ecosystem involving banks, technology providers, regulators, security systems, and users.

Mr. Khadka emphasized that fintech innovation must always balance speed with trust. Security, transparency, and compliance are just as important as user convenience. This insight gave me a new respect for the systems working behind every digital transaction I make daily.

Learning 3: Career clarity for both business and IT students

What made the session especially valuable was how inclusive it was. Mr. Khadka clearly explained that fintech is not only for programmers.

• Business students can build careers in product management, operations, compliance, marketing, and strategy.
• IT students can explore roles in software development, cybersecurity, data analytics, and system architecture.

This breakdown helped many of us see where we could fit within the fintech industry. Personally, it helped me connect my academic learning with real career possibilities in Nepal’s digital economy.

Learning 4: Behind the scenes of digital payments

The explanation of how digital payments work behind the scenes was one of the most fascinating parts of the session. Mr. Khadka simplified complex topics like encryption, authentication, transaction flow, fraud detection, and settlement processes.

Even students without a technical background could understand how secure and sophisticated digital payment systems are. I realized that every simple “payment successful” message represents layers of technology and trust working together.

Learning 5: Trust is the foundation of fintech innovation

A recurring theme throughout the session was trust. Innovation alone is not enough in financial technology users must feel safe. Mr. Khadka highlighted how fintech companies must earn trust through security, reliability, and ethical practices.

This lesson felt especially relevant in today’s digital world, where trust determines whether users adopt or abandon new technologies.

Interactive discussions and real conversations

The Q&A session stood out as students asked thoughtful questions about startup funding, technical challenges, career transitions, and entrepreneurship in Nepal. The answers were honest and practical, which made the discussion feel genuine rather than motivational talk. It was encouraging to see so many students confidently engaging with an industry leader.

Takeaways and Next Steps

I left the session feeling inspired and more informed about fintech and entrepreneurship. My key takeaways include:

• Entrepreneurship is a long-term journey built on resilience and learning.
• Fintech combines technology, finance, regulation, and trust.
• There are diverse career paths in fintech for both business and IT students.
• Digital payment systems are far more complex and secure than they appear.
• Building trust is just as important as building technology.

This session expanded my understanding of Nepal’s digital economy and encouraged me to think more practically and confidently about my future. It was not just an informative session, but a perspective-changing experience that motivated me to explore opportunities in fintech and innovation with greater clarity and ambition.

About Author

I am Aashika Shrestha, a Level 5 student at PCPS College, currently pursuing a B.Sc. (Hons) in Software Engineering. My academic interests lie in building intelligent systems, robots and IOT however I am highly interested in field of event management and writing. I am also a part of pcps innovators community

I am grateful to PCPS College for giving me the opportunity to write this blog and explore new learning experiences. This experience has helped me develop my analytical thinking and motivated me to continue learning and growing academically.

About PCPS Opportunity

PCPS Opportunity is a dedicated PCPS initiative that creates and showcases opportunities for students, faculty, and the wider college ecosystem. Through PCPS Opportunity blogs, the PCPS college shares experiences, insights, and achievements that bring real-world perspective and support learning and growth. PCPS opportunity also provides platform for Students to connect with potential jobs and internship.