Author: Samuel Suru

Paystack, one of Africa’s most prominent payment technology companies and majority-owned by the global giant Stripe, has officially terminated the employment of its Co-founder and former Chief Technology Officer, Ezra Olubi, following serious allegations of inappropriate conduct involving a junior employee. This decision represents one of the most significant and high-profile leadership exits within Nigeria’s rapidly expanding tech ecosystem this year, and it has immediately intensified ongoing, critical discussions surrounding corporate governance, ethical workplace standards, and accountability mechanisms within the entire sector. Olubi publicly released a statement on Saturday confirming his departure, noting that his exit followed internal deliberations by…

The Mary Ojulari Foundation has significantly expanded its commitment to advancing sustainable development and fueling youth-led enterprise in Nigeria by successfully awarding a total of ₦50 million in catalytic grants to eight high-potential young entrepreneurs. This pivotal funding announcement was made during the Foundation’s prestigious Vanguard Fellowship Ignite Bootcamp Awards and Networking Cocktail Night held in Lagos, an event that marked the successful conclusion of the second cohort of the Foundation’s intensive two-week entrepreneurial bootcamp. Following the rigorous training, each of the selected fellows is set to receive ₦6,250,000 to directly scale their ventures. The bootcamp’s curriculum was expertly crafted…

Verto, a global B2B payments platform, has officially announced the winners of its inaugural Verto Global Business Award, an initiative specifically created to highlight early-stage African startups. This award recognizes young companies that are demonstrably driving innovation, fostering greater economic inclusion, and enhancing the continent’s growing participation in global commerce. Launched in February, the program reinforces Verto’s commitment to nurturing African founders who possess significant global ambition. Beyond the provision of crucial capital, the award also furnishes startups with enhanced visibility, valuable international supplier connections, and the essential financial infrastructure required to successfully scale their operations beyond their immediate…

The narrative surrounding African startup failures often defaults to a lack of funding, yet the deeper reality points toward a systemic weakness in operational execution and market strategy. The recent shutdown of Joovlin, a Nigerian fintech that boasted over 2,000 active resellers but couldn’t generate sustained revenue, exemplifies this challenge. Joovlin’s story is far from unique; the African startup graveyard is filled with ventures that achieved rapid user acquisition and raised significant capital only to fold due to internal structural issues, premature scaling, and unclear market fit. Experts conservatively estimate that approximately 70% of African startups fail in their first…

Fusepay, a fintech startup founded in Seychelles and focused on developing specialized payment solutions for frontier markets, has officially launched its proprietary digital payment platform. This platform is designed to help businesses, including retailers, wholesalers, and billers, streamline their financial operations and facilitate a transition away from outdated, slow, and paper-based transaction processes. The launch is a direct response to the Seychelles’ business ecosystem’s heavy reliance on manual processes and paper cheques, which historically slow cash flow, introduce operational inefficiencies, and increase susceptibility to fraud. This initiative aligns strategically with the Central Bank of Seychelles’ overarching push toward fully digital…

Egyptian HRtech startup bluworks has successfully concluded a $1 million seed funding round, marking a critical step in its expansive mission to digitize the management of blue-collar workforces across the Middle East and Africa (MENA). The investment was strongly led by a consortium that included A15, Enza Capital, Beltone Venture Capital, and Acasia Ventures, complemented by participation from several key strategic angel investors. This robust backing underscores the significant and rapidly growing investor confidence in specialized HRtech solutions targeting the region’s vast frontline labor market. Founded in 2022 by Hussein Wahdan and Farah Osman, bluworks is establishing what it terms…

Enko Capital, a prominent African asset manager, has announced a significant fundraising milestone for its Enko Impact Credit Fund, successfully mobilizing $130 million towards its investment goals. This achievement follows a major $30 million commitment from the Public Investment Corporation (PIC), South Africa’s largest asset manager. The PIC’s investment has pushed the fund’s total commitments to 86.7% of its initial target, with the potential to reach its authorized ceiling of $200 million within the next seven months. The PIC, fully owned by the South African state and responsible for overseeing the vast resources of the Government Employees Pension Fund, has…

This comprehensive list details a selection of 30 innovative African startups, showcasing a wide array of technological applications—including AI, IoT, and Blockchain—that are being deployed to solve critical challenges and drive efficiency across core continental sectors such as agriculture, cross-border payments, and the circular economy. This diverse group highlights the maturity and strategic focus of Africa’s venture landscape. Agritech & Food Systems These eleven companies are specifically focused on leveraging technology to significantly improve agricultural efficiency, enhance food production reliability, and expand essential financial access for smallholder farmers. Startup Name Core Innovation Acre Insights Utilizes advanced remote sensing technologies,…

A recent report indicates that African startups, particularly those based in Nigeria, are expressing strong reservations about listing on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) primarily due to significant currency and liquidity issues. More than two-thirds of surveyed founders cited “currency and foreign exchange mismatches” as the main impediment to pursuing a local listing. This challenge stems from the fact that the vast majority of startups backed by international investors use the US dollar as their accounting currency. Since the NGX is denominated in the local naira currency, listing locally exposes these companies to substantial exchange rate risks, exacerbated by the naira’s…

Zenith Bank, a leading financial institution, concluded its highly successful 2025 Tech Fair, themed “Future Forward 5.0: Tech for Success – Innovate, Adapt, Accelerate,” by awarding a total of N140 million in non-dilutive funding to ten distinguished small firms and innovators in Lagos. The event successfully convened numerous stakeholders from across the technology industry, serving as a dynamic platform designed to foster fresh ideas, encourage cross-sector collaboration, and generate scalable solutions capable of profoundly shaping the future of African technology. Following an exceptionally competitive hackathon and subsequent pitch session, ten African innovators secured the substantial funding support required to effectively…