Life happens. You do not always expect things to go as planned. Being a co-founder of a fintech unicorn is not a walk in the park. It comes with its pressure and deliverables. If you did not meet up, you have failed. In life, you deserve whatever comes to you. You have earned the co-founder label. You have earned the expulsion, too.

On the one hand

The following ousted founders and co-founders deserved what they got. Whatever they got came through internal conflicts, ethical issues, and market pressures. Steve Jobs. Travis Kalanick [Uber]. Jack Dorsey [Twitter]. Andrew Mason [Groupon]. Some, like Jobs and Dorsey, made triumphant comebacks. Others moved on. Created something bigger.

On the other hand

Entrepreneur.com reported that Elon Musk dismissed his Tesla CEO and co-founder, Martin Eberhard. American Apparel’s Dov Charney was fired for inappropriate behaviour and sexual misconduct. Ezra Olubi was expelled from Paystack as the co-founder.

In the long term

If I were Ezra, I would take a retreat and come back rejuvenated. Face the world anew. Develop an excellent product that will not compete with Paystack but outclass it. Pitch it to discerning venture capitalists. I will build a top-tier product. For instance, if Paystack builds rail tracks, I will pave the sky with concrete. I would not compete in the same market.

If I were Ezra, I would create my own niche and nurture it. Remember, living well is the best revenge. I will not pursue a legal action against Paystack. It is draining. I will not hold a grudge. It is unprofitable. Instead, I will focus on my work. I will recruit a talented team to complement me. I am a priest. If one of them is an LGBTQ funder, oho, super. If not, no worries. Bring strawberries. As an eccentric, I would release my intellectual capacity. A passion for learning. I will learn about many subjects. Go to Harvard for a year. Enrol at MIT for a three-month course. Find the right connection. Get into the venture capitalist networks. Bury my head. Emerge anew.

If I were Ezra, I would take the expulsion on the chin and roll with it. I will extract the positive from the negative. After all, being expelled from Paystack as a co-founder will not be the end of fintech for me. It is the beginning. Life is not about perfection. It is about progress. I will keep moving forward. I will choose my companions carefully. I will continue to excel. I will be me. E.Z.R.A.

If I were Ezra, I would not exit the fintech ecosystem. I would choose to dominate it unusually. There are many areas needing innovation outside of the payment system. That will be the job description of my eccentric team. When I find it, fintech will not be the same again. As Ezra, the priest and a scribe who re-enacted Jewish law among the Jews, I will re-enact fintech!

In the short term

Unfortunately, I am not Ezra Olubi. That is how life rolls.

*Olaegbe (psalmsonolaegbe@gmail.com)

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The suspension and eventual sacking of Ezra Olubi from Paystack, a company where he was Chief Technology Officer and co-founder, over resurfaced tweets from a decade ago, is not surprising. If you understand social media and its affordances, then you know this is predestined reckoning. What we have just witnessed is the inevitable clash between the ephemeral, edgy “cruise” of the early Nigerian Twitter and the permanent, high-stakes record demanded of leaders in the global digital economy. As always, I have to state from the outset, I have no interest in interrogating the specific content of those old tweets. People have already done that as we have seen in two camps – of outrage and defence. Instead, I am more interested in the implication of the digital memory, the evolving moral economy of our online lives, and the impossible burden of maintaining a consistent identity across a decade of profound personal and professional change.

Until his fall from grace, Ezra Olubi was a certified icon of the Nigerian tech ecosystem. As co-founder of Paystack, his was one of the faces of a rare success story – a young man fronting a local startup that attracted global acquisition and became a beacon of possibility. It is why I find his fall all the more dramatic. The old tweets, said to contain homophobic and other inflammatory language, created a storm that eventually forced Paystack to act. The statement from the company’s spokesperson was a classic example in corporate crisis communication: “These comments are unacceptable and inconsistent with our values… Ezra is currently not involved with the running of Paystack…” The swiftness of the action was as telling as the action itself.

To understand the fury, you have to understand context collapse, a concept from digital sociology, which describes how social media flattens multiple audiences into a single context. Olubi’s tweets, possibly made for a small, closed group of most likely like-minded audience on the edgy, informal platform that was Nigerian Twitter in the early 2010s, were never intended for the audience of 2025. While it might not have mattered when he was tweeting them, today’s audience of a global workforce, international investors, LGBTQ+ colleagues, and a diverse user base dramatically changes the context. Combined, this mixed audience have dragged a “backstage” performance onto the “front stage” of Olubi’s professional life. In effect, he was dragged before a jury that did not exist when the crime was committed, but which must judge him regardless.

Expectedly, this fall from grace has elicited a familiar social media reaction, revealing a nation deeply conflicted. On one side were those demanding accountability. For this group, power necessitates responsibility. If you are an Exec in a place like Paystack, attracting foreign investment the way that company is doing, you have to submit yourself to higher standards, they seem to argue. For this set of people, past rhetoric or bigotry expressed even while at the entry-level of a career would signal major character flaws that should have been flagged much earlier. The other side of the arguments I have seen online appears more forgiving; some of them framing the anger at the resurfaced tweet as witch-hunting a successful young man, who probably was tweeting for clout. They seem to believe that human fallibility and personal evolution should be permissible for talented young men. From what I see online, both sides may differ in their reactions but they both say the same thing – the Internet does not forget.

It’s a phrase we have used casually but it’s deep but its mechanics are worth examining. The internet doesn’t forget because of the fundamental architecture of networked publics, a concept scholar Dana Boyd brilliantly breaks down into four key properties. Olubi’s case is a textbook illustration of each. First, online expressions are persistent; they are automatically recorded and archived. Spoken words tend to have a limited shelf life but digital contents like a tweet, lasts longer because it is a piece of data that is lodged on a server. Second, digital content is replicable; meaning it can be duplicated perfectly. Note the fact that screenshots of those tweets have been saved and are being shared online, whether or not the originals were deleted. Third, this content is scalable; its visibility going ‘out of control’ once people became interested in it. So, what might have been created for a small, closed group has the potential to ‘go viral’ ten years down the line, producing unintended consequences. Finally, and perhaps most crucially, it is searchable. Digital content of this type – in networked publics – can be accessed through search, allowing anyone to uncover inappropriate pieces of content produced and shared in moments of impropriety.

Your digital footprint is your permanent CV. The first step towards any position of leadership in the 21st century must be a rigorous, pre-emptive audit of your own digital history.

Olubi’s past became exactly that – a “digital ghost,” an archived, decontextualised version of his former self, empowered by persistence, replication, scalability, and searchability, that could be summoned at any moment to haunt his present success. This saga underscores the complete erosion of the line between public and private life for those in the digital spotlight. Using the sociological lens of dramaturgy, we can see life as a performance with a “front stage” for the public and a “back stage” for private moments. For a founder like Olubi, the “founder as brand” model means the front stage has completely consumed the back stage. His personal identity is inextricably linked to Paystack’s corporate identity, its valuation, and its reputation. There is no longer a “private” Twitter account for a figure of his stature; every digital utterance, past or present, is a corporate communication.

The hard lessons from this are stark, and they extend far beyond a single individual. For individuals, especially ambitious young professionals, the lesson is the non-negotiable need for digital prudence. The idea that one can be reckless online and then clean up their act upon achieving success is dangerously obsolete. Your digital footprint is your permanent CV. The first step towards any position of leadership in the 21st century must be a rigorous, pre-emptive audit of your own digital history. Assume everything will be found.

For companies and startups, this is a glaring lesson in “skeleton-in-the-closet” due diligence. In an ecosystem where a founder’s story is a core asset, investors and boards can no longer afford to ignore the digital pasts of their key figures. A crisis management plan is useless if it is drafted after the damning tweets have already gone viral. Proactive investigation and preparation are now as crucial as financial audits.

Yet, the most profound challenge is for society itself. The Olubi incident forces us to confront our own role in this ecosystem of digital shame. The social media backlash, often dismissed as “cancel culture,” can also be seen as a form of decentralised social regulation – a way for the public to enforce new, more progressive norms where formal institutions are slow to act. However, a warning – this imperfect model forces the question: How do we collectively define a genuine the digital age? Do we forgive once tweets are deleted? Does the cancel culture permit growth and forgiveness, or does it merely enforce a phantom kind of digital puritanism through permanent punishment? When does accountability become a futile attempt to judge the past by the standards of the present?

In the final analysis, the forced exit of Ezra Olubi is a canonical case study for Nigeria’s digital coming of age. It is timely alert that the journey from anonymous netizen to public figure is a one-way street. Once on this track, it is near impossible to retreat but as you make progress, you go with the dispiriting feeling that it is with the shadow of your digital past following closely behind. Just one fear though. Is there a chance that as digital ecosystem evolves, we can build a system that does not just ‘delete’ flawed individuals but is able to hold people accountable without ruling out the opportunity to change. As a people we have to find a way to use the unforgiving, permanent memory of the server to ensure that young men with ‘dark minds’ get help early before they have the chance to destroy themselves and others around them. And that is because we agree that in the searchable past, we all have something to lose.

Dr. Olaniyan, the Convener, Centre for Social Media Research, Nigeria writes about digital culture

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George Washington founded the President’s Club at the inauguration of John Adams in 1797. It was an exclusive club of two members. In 1953, Harry Truman and Herbert Hoover re-established The Presidents Club firmly with rules and regulations. It has an unofficial code of ethics. The code of silence forbids former presidents from openly attacking another member. It is a closed club.

On the one hand

The billion-dollar technology club is not a closed one. It is not open either. You do not apply to join. You have to merit an invitation. You have to show you have arrived. You have to earn the right to join. That is why most exclusive clubs have high entry barriers.

The billion-dollar technology club has technology firms that have reached the 1-billion-dollar milestone. Alternatively, a technology start-up that has a $1 billion valuation. These Fintech firms are unicorns. As a unicorn, it does not mean you have arrived. It means you have the growth potential to “disrupt the market or create a new market.”

One of the venture capitalists told me that having a $1 billion valuation does not mean a start-up has $1 billion in revenue. Venture capitalists fix the price tag on the company. It is for investments. In summary, the venture capitalists made the unicorn.

Despite the challenges, some Fintech firms have raised their games. They are innovating. They have attracted the attention of global equity firms from the USA, Europe, and Asia.

On the other hand

The popular social media audio app, Clubhouse raised $100 million in the first round of valuation. Virtual events platform Hopin hit a $2.1bn valuation one year after launch. It raised $125 million in the second round of funding.

Fintech is in a continuous state of growth in Nigeria. It is throwing up more unicorns. The first unicorn is Interswitch. It reached that status when Visa acquired a 20 per cent stake in 2019. Mitchell Elegbe established the company 18 years ago. Another company that is riding the unicorn wave is Flutterwave.

Flutterwave and Paystack are club members. Stripe acquired Paystack for $200 million in 2020. The grade is incomplete because your start-up is not on the list. That is because other unicorns are brewing in the tech laboratory. The world is waiting. The world would not wait forever. But the more challenges we have as a nation, the more we require innovation to surmount those challenges.

The reason different Fintech firms are innovating. Some have revolutionised payment wallets. Others remittances. Processing. Merchant service providers. Lending. The rest have modernised infrastructure. Wealth management and savings. Yet, we have more work to do. We need more Flutterwaves.

In the long term

The study by the Digital Frontier Institute shows Kenya is ahead in growth and innovation. Nigeria is second. Tanzania is third. South Africa is fourth. To close the gap, we cannot doze off. We cannot rest. We have not arrived because we have not scratched the surface yet.

Fintech firms are redefining how we perform payments. They have brought ease and absolute ease to banking and made it borderless. Aside from this, Fintech activities in Nigeria still hover around payments. That is why we have more payment solutions. This trend will continue unless we innovate.

There are territories to conquer in consumer lending. Agriculture. Asset management. Insurance. Healthcare. A 2020 report by McKinsey & Company on harnessing Nigeria’s Fintech potential noted that consumer lending has 30 per cent coverage. If we increase this to 50 per cent, we can say we are on the way to paradise. If we can cover 30 per cent of the insurance and healthcare sectors then we can say, “Keep it up.”

We cannot say that because there are more grounds to cover. More work to do. More sectors are waiting to feel the Fintech magic. This means that if you are a start-up you have the opportunity to join the billion-dollar club. Simply innovate. Why is Kenya ahead of Nigeria? What is Kenya doing right that we cannot do? Where did the Kenyans get it right?

We have a shortage of infrastructure. The total lack of infrastructure has slowed our movement. The huge cost of operations has impeded some start-ups. Irregular power supply has increased the use of diesel-powered machines. Poor internet connectivity brings the burden of subscribing to many service providers. The high cost of real estate has brought strangers together.

In the short term 

Despite the challenges, some Fintech firms have raised their games. They are innovating. They have attracted the attention of global equity firms from the USA, Europe, and Asia. That is how to join the billion-dollar club. With the growth rate and innovation in the Fintech ecosystem, we are likely to see a new member of the exclusive billion-dollar club soon. That is exclusive.

*Olaegbe (psalmsonolaegbe@gmail.com)

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He said the acceleration of the African continent towards becoming the next Silicon Valley was a collective effort that required the continued collaboration of governments, the private sector, academia, and the civil society.

Speaking at the GITEX One Africa Digital Summit in Marrakech, Morocco on Wednesday, Governor Sanwo-Olu said his administration’s focus on fostering an enabling environment for startups and tech companies to flourish was yielding unprecedented results, creating jobs, driving economic growth, and providing solutions to societal problems.

The governor said the story of Lagos was a testament to the collaborative efforts of both the public and private sectors in fostering development, noting that “The remarkable rise of Yaba, a bustling metropolitan area in Lagos and home to the highest concentration of start-ups in Nigeria, owes its success to a well-coordinated public-private partnership.”

He said: “I stand before you today not just as the Governor of Lagos State, a sub-sovereign state within Nigeria with a population of over 20 million people, but as an ardent believer in the vast and untapped potential that Africa holds within the realms of technology and digital innovation.

“As the Governor of Lagos State, a city that is at the forefront of this transformation, I am committed to supporting the growth of the tech industry in Africa.

“Lagos, Nigeria’s bustling mega-city, is emerging as a thriving epicenter of tech entrepreneurship and innovation. Lagos is home to some of the most innovative and successful startups in Africa, including Andela, Paystack, Flutterwave, Kobo360, Kuda Bank and many others. These companies have not only transformed industries like fintech and e-commerce but have also inspired a new generation of entrepreneurs and investors across the continent.

“These success stories have been made possible, in part, by the fund raised from companies, unicorns, and venture capital firms that have flooded the Lagos tech ecosystem in recent years. More importantly, these investments have been attracted to the market size and the enabling environment that Lagos is becoming on the African continent.

“The acceleration of Africa towards becoming the next Silicon Valley is not a mere aspiration; it is a reality unfolding before our eyes. It is a collective effort that requires the continued collaboration of governments, the private sector, academia, and civil society. It is a journey of transformation that sees Africa not just as a consumer of technology but as a creator, an innovator, and a leader in the digital age.”

Speaking on bold steps taken by his administration in the area of technology, Governor Sanwo-Olu disclosed that “In deepening internet penetration, a key ingredient for start-up, we have deployed over 2,900km of fibre optic infrastructure that aims to connect public schools, government buildings, hospitals, and other points of interest.

“Along the same channels, we have deployed, in partnership with the private sector 3,000km of optical duct infrastructure. This will serve to de-risk infrastructure development in Lagos which will in turn increase connectivity.

“In the past one year, Lagos has attracted over one billion dollars in Data center investment. This will enable the local domicile of digital platforms as well as facilitate the proliferation of digital technology opportunities. The proliferation of these investments also presents 10 opportunities for talent development within this ecosystem.

“Our Smart City implementation has seen us deploy over 600 Smart Intelligent Video Surveillance Cameras as well as Intelligent Transportation Cameras for Traffic monitoring and management. Over the past year, through our initial ITS pilot deployment leveraging our Automatic number plate recognition cameras, monitoring of violation infractions has reduced traffic warden in-person enforcement by 30 per cent.

“We have also begun a significant identity management programme through our Lagos State Residents Registration Agency that will seek to identify all our inhabitants. Current projections state that Lagos will have 30 million inhabitants by 2035. It is imperative to drive the identity management ecosystem for a smarter city. This will lend to more efficient resource allocation and planning for the state.”

Governor Sanwo-Olu added that “The Lagos Digital Identity Project has undergone a fundamental restructuring of its operational model. With a new digital identification card that is capable of enabling access to benefits, electronic ticketing and so on, it further drives the digital inclusion benchmark for Lagos. Currently, about five million residents have been captured. We are targeting another 10 million within the next year.

“Through our Lagos State Employment Trust fund, we have funded digital skills training interventions for more than 4,000 beneficiaries. Courses include digital marketing, coding, and other innovation courses. These digital skills training are needed capacity interventions that lend positively to the development of the ecosystem.

“Undeniably, this infrastructure has significantly contributed to the flourishing startup economy within Lagos State. However, the momentum is not confined to Lagos or Nigeria alone. From Nairobi’s Silicon Savannah to Cape Town’s Silicon Cape, and from Rwanda’s growing tech scene to Morocco’s digital development strides, the story is the same. Africa is rising, and technology is the wind beneath our wings.

“According to a report by McKinsey, Africa’s consumer spending is projected to reach $2.1 trillion by 2025, and its workforce is expected to be the largest in the world by 2035. The potential for growth and development in Africa is immense, and the technology industry is playing a crucial role in unlocking this potential.”

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He said Lagos State is the right place for investments in FinTech, EdTech, Health-Tech, Business Process Outsourcing, BPO, Talent Training and Placement, or Physical Infrastructure like Data Centres, among others.

“It is always my very great pleasure to engage with existing and potential investors and business people in Nigeria, and most especially, Lagos State, the crown subnational jewel of the African economy. I am sure many of you will be familiar with the numbers, the fact that Lagos is the fifth largest economy on the continent, the most populous city, and the fastest-growing urban centre, with a very vibrant and entrepreneurial population, made up of mostly young people.

“We have the market, we have the talent, we have the enabling environment, we have the physical infrastructure, all in place. And we have the success stories, great testimonials of what is possible when people come together to develop and implement great ideas and solutions, backed by the power of private capital and the support of understanding and enthusiastic governments,” he said.

Governor Sanwo-Olu spoke at a High-Level US-Nigeria Council for Food Security, Trade and Investment, UNSC, event on the sidelines of the World Bank-IMF Spring Meetings in Washington DC, United States on Thursday.

The governor acknowledged the place of the US-Nigeria Council, as the pre-eminent business organisation working to strengthen economic and commercial ties between the United States and Nigeria.

Governor Sanwo-Olu during the event spoke on the giant strides of his administration in different sectors, especially in Infrastructure, Food Security and Digital Technology, in line with the THEMES six pillars developmental agenda – Transportation and Traffic Management, Healthcare and Environment, Education and Technology, Making Lagos a 21st Century Megacity, Entertainment, Tourism and Sports, and Security and Governance.

He said: “One of the accomplishments we are proudest of, in our first four years, has been the completion of the first phase of the Lagos Light Rail Blue Line – the first modern intra-city rail system in Lagos State.

“As I speak test-running is going on, allowing Lagosians to have a long-overdue feel of what it is to belong to a city with the 21st-century rail system.

“We are also completing work on the first phase of the Red Line; together the Blue and Red Lines form two of the planned total of six Lines that will crisscross the metropolis.

“At the beginning of this year, the President joined us in Lagos to commission the Lekki Deep Sea Port, on the eastern corridor of Lagos. It will interest you to know that the Deep-Sea Port is the first Deep Sea Port to be built in Nigeria, and is now the most modern one in West Africa. A real game-changer for shipping and logistics in Nigeria and all of the West Coast of Africa.

“Lagos State owns a 20 per cent stake in that Port, while private investors own 75 per cent. The Port will create an estimated 170,000 direct and indirect jobs and generate government revenue over of $200 billion over its 45-year concession period.

“It is in our view among the biggest and most transformational infrastructure investments in Lagos State in several decades, and we worked very hard with the private sector and the Federal Government to deliver it.

“Expect more of these kinds of collaboration in the next four years, especially as we look to deliver on a new bridge across the Lagos Lagoon, the 4th Mainland Bridge, and a new International Airport in Lagos.”

The governor said some of the large-scale infrastructure projects being implemented by his administration were, a 10-lane Expressway, linking Nigeria to Benin Republic, and a network of Access Roads to the Lekki Deep Sea Port.

Speaking on the Lagos State government’s commitment to agriculture and food security, Governor Sanwo-Olu said his government focus was on processing and storage because of the state’s population, which makes it Nigeria’s biggest food consumption hub.

“We are also very blessed with water – a lagoon and the Atlantic Ocean, which means fisheries is a huge opportunity. It is with these opportunities in mind that we have recently completed the largest rice mill in sub-Saharan Africa, which will be managed by private players, while also building what will be the largest Food Security Systems and Central Logistics Park in sub-Saharan Africa.

“This Park with storage facilities that can guarantee uninterrupted food supplies to more than 10 million persons, for at least 90 days, is one of the outcomes of our five-year Lagos State Agricultural and Food Systems Road Map (2021–2025). I will encourage you all to get as familiar as possible with these Lagos State Government policy documents and road maps, which give an overview of our thinking and policy direction.”

Governor Sanwo-Olu also spoke about Lagos State government’s success in digital technology and innovation, noting that Nigeria’s ICT Sector, a component of the digital economy, was the only sector of the economy that grew by double digits during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Lagos, I am proud to say, is the Fintech Capital of Africa, the city where companies like Flutterwave, Paystack and Interswitch were birthed. And these are only three of several thriving startups in our ecosystem.

“According to Afridigest, Africa had, as of February 2023, seven Unicorn Companies. Of those seven, four originated in Nigeria, Lagos to be precise, and all four attained their unicorn status between 2019 and 2021. These four are also reported to be responsible for $7.5billion of the 11.45 billion on total valuation of African unicorns.

“Last year, Microsoft launched its Africa Development Center in Lagos, while Google landed its Equiano Sub-Sea Cable on our shores. We have, in the last few years, seen a huge number of major new data centre investments,  of value more than 1.5 billion US dollars.”

He stressed further that “As a State Government we are partnering with the Federal Government, and the private sector, to redevelop the National Theatre, a Lagos landmark, into a world-class Creative and Technology Park, with hubs for IT, Music, Fi, lm, and Fashion. That multi-million-dollar redevelopment is very well advanced now and should be completed this year.

“I must also not fail to mention the fact that Nigeria now has a Startup Act, The Nigeria Startup Act, which was signed into law by President Buhari some months ago, and which is further solidifying our status as the country of choice for technology investment in Africa.

“On our own, as the Lagos State Government, we have recently completed the laying of 3,000km fiber-optic cable and associated infrastructure across the State, connecting public buildings and infrastructure, as part of our Smart City Project. That Smart City Project also includes hundreds of video surveillance cameras, to improve security in the metropolis, as well as help us better coordinate our emergency response systems.

“Another key element of this Smart City Project is our Intelligent Transport System, which helps us to manage traffic better. Anyone who’s familiar with Lagos knows that traffic management is very key to maximizing the potential of the megacity.

“Our Lagos State Science Research and Innovation Council (LASRIC) exists to provide funding and strategic support to science and technology research and innovation in Lagos State, from academia and from the private sector. So far LASRIC has funded more than 60 startups working in healthcare, agriculture, construction, alternative energy, the circular economy, Software as a Service, SaaS, and so on.

“Digital Transformation is a key priority for us, introducing digital tools to re-imagine and underline everything we do as a government, from our internal operations to our interactions with the public. Some of the ways we have digitally transformed our service offerings across various economic sectors include digitizing the payments systems for our multi-modal transport networks, as well as the delivery of our educational curriculum in our public schools.”

Speaking on the May 29 swearing-in of the President-Elect, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, Governor Sanwo-Olu said: “We have a new President-Elect who will be sworn in on May 29: Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, former Governor of Lagos State, between 1999 and 2007. For me personally, it means a lot, my first public sector job was in the Lagos State Government when he was Governor, and also the fact that we will have a President who, having governed Lagos, has a very personal understanding of its needs and challenges.

“Lagos will continue to be in alignment with the ruling party at the centre, which we have enjoyed for the last eight years, and which has been transformational for us in various ways.”

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Did the recruiters fail? Did they fail because they hired flight-risk talents who quit the firms after two years? Maybe not. Most recruiters see a candidate who has a founder’s experience as a red flag. So, they do not recruit such a candidate. They missed the submarines. Nobody noticed them. They suddenly emerge within and fly away.

Recruiters often look at retention rate and role fit. They do not hire a former founder. Writing under are former startup founders less hireable in hbr.org,  the authors argued that no one will know if you fail to offer an interview to a candidate who could become the firm’s next big thinker. But no one will forget it if you fight for successful former founders, only for the founders to leave the company within a year to begin new startups. Or go with other employees in tow.

Recruiters often look at retention rate and role fit. They do not hire a former founder.

On the one hand

The following hires left. They left to become the boss. Ansia Leng quit Google. She is a co-founder of Hatch.Co – an online marketplace for custom-made goods. It connects makers to customers. She told Business Insider that she had an incredible network of managers at Google. But she is compelled to carve her path.

Likewise, David Jones quit Havas Global. He founded One Young World – a global youth forum that connects young adults with a network of leaders. Also, Jasper Vallance was a manager at Google. He is the founder of Jasper Online Consulting. While at Google, he had three meals a day. Cooked by talented chefs. Free yoga. Massage. Extravagant overseas conferences. Still, he left.

READ ALSO: How to fill Nigeria’s Fintech talents gap, By Rarzack Olaegbe 

In the same vein, Sachin Agarwal left Apple. He founded Posterous. Working at Apple was Agarwal’s dream job. He was a fan of Apple’s products. He eventually helped to design those products. He had a problem. Agarwal told Mashable that he felt a “burning desire” to build a better way to share photos and content on the Web. That surpassed his desire to work at Apple. Twitter acquired Posterous. Agarwal and the Posterous team joined Twitter. Life goes on.

Tony Fadell also left Apple. He founded Nest Labs. Google acquired Nest Labs for $3.2 billion. Meanwhile, Fadell still works 60-70 hours per week. His role with Nest has given him the one thing he longed for: More time with his family.

On the other hand

The following flight-risk “founders” quit Paystack for the same reason. Abdulhammid Hassan was a product manager. He and Prakhar Singh founded Mono – an open finance technology that offers APIs that give businesses user-permission to access their customers’ bank accounts. Mono got a $500,000 pre-seed investment from early-stage investors. Y-Combinator invited Mono into its winter 2021 Batch. Mono covers Nigeria, Ghana, South Africa, and Kenya.

Idorenyin Obong, an Android engineer, left to start Grey, formerly Aboki Africa. The company provides a platform for Africans to create digital foreign accounts to send and receive international payments without the traditional foreign exchange setup. Grey is in Y-Combinator’s winter 2022 batch.

Femi Aluko and Olumide Ojo were former backend principal engineers and frontend principal engineers respectively. They are the founders of Chowdeck. Aluko was inspired to build a reliable food delivery start-up in Nigeria – an on-demand food delivery startup. Chowdeck allows customers to order their favourite local and continental dishes from preferred restaurants and get them under 30 minutes. Chowdeck is also in Y Combinator’s 2022 winter batch. “Every single era in Paystack has prepared me for the problems I’m solving today,” Aluko wrote on his medium page.

Emmanuel Okeke was a senior software engineer, engineering manager, and technical lead. He is now the co-founder and CTO of Brass Technology. Ezra Olubi, the co-founder of Paystack also invested in Brass.

Kuassi Jimmy Kumako has integration and developer experience. Now, he is the co-founder of Moneco. The company is in Y Combinator’s summer batch 2022. It received an investment of $500,000 from the renowned accelerator. Ikechukwu Obi was a technical product specialist. He founded Alvative. The firm provides African startups with temporary or full-time junior to medium technical support personnel.

But no one will forget it if you fight for successful former founders, only for the founders to leave the company within a year to begin new startups.

From the sideliner

Africa’s fintech ecosystem is growing.

The next founders are daring. They offer rare solutions.

But they are still getting funds outside the shores.

The ecosystem is experiencing success. That is what matters.

But one thing is missing, though.

What is that?

We need a Paystack Club – a fintech firm that incubates start-ups and funds them for the next phase.

You are a flight-risk hire!

The post Why do Fintech firms hire flight-risk talents? appeared first on Frontpageng.

Lagos has everything for everybody. It has something for you. The city is one of the most amazing places in the world. It has wonderful beaches, skyscrapers and parks. The entertainment options are unlimited. As a city, Lagos has more job opportunities beyond your imaginations. That is why undergraduates want to serve in Lagos. Young executives want to work in Lagos. Artisan, mason and cobbler want to earn a living in Lagos.

They all troop in, searching for that one lost gold coin. Some find it. Others found it. It is not magic. It is not luck. It is hard work. It is tenacity. It is sheer doggedness. Akwaaba Lagos! Welcome to Lagos. As a rough diamond, Lagos has become a world-class destination. You can argue these facts if you like. Soro Soke!

Lagos has won awards as the city with densely populated areas, busy streets, dirty drains and massive traffic jams in Nigeria. With these awards, would you say Lagos still an amazing city? Yes. It has a flamboyant ruling class. It has several kings, kings with extravagant spaces and places. You are not a king if you don’t have a retinue of sidekicks and side chicks. If you are a regular at one of the prodigious parties, you will party all year round. Scrumptious, delicious and luscious, Lagos party scene has it. If you live in Lagos, you will not want to leave Lagos. You cannot argue that fact. But maybe you are right. After all, Lagos is imperfect. Then, think about it. No city is perfect.

With its inadequacy, Lagos has a higher rate of financial access and inclusion than the rest of the country.

So in its imperfection, Lagos has one good thing. Lagos has a thriving Fintech ecosystem. I didn’t say that. Startup Blink has confirmed it. In its 2019 Global Startup Ecosystem Rankings, Startup Blink has analysed 1,000 cities and 100 countries. Lagos has emerged as the best startup ecosystem in Africa. It ranked ahead of Kenya and Cape Town.

That is not surprising. When the financial services payment processor, Strike was looking for a Fintech startup to acquire, Strike boarded a plane all the way from California, USA and landed in Lagos. The company came for a startup called Paystack. Stripe paid about $8 billion for the startup that was birthed in the bowel of Lagos, the imperfect city.

However, with its imperfection, Lagos has its own week when it celebrates Fintech. Lagos Fintech Week is a global event that showcases Fintech opportunities, solutions, services and partnerships through the lens of Lagos as a city. Held annually, the event has attracted participants from diverse institutions in Lagos and outside Nigeria. For instance in the 2020 edition, the British Deputy High Commissioner, Ben Llewellyn-Jones and Lagos State Commissioner for Finance, Dr Rabiu Olowo were among the dignitaries that delivered keynotes.

Besides, the deputy governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria [CBN], Ade Shonubi attended Lagos Fintech Week in 2019. He unveiled some significant numbers concerning Lagos as a leading state in terms of cashless transactions. Rising from 2020 edition, however, Fintech experts who spoke at the event revealed what so many people did not know about Lagos.

In its beautiful imperfection, Lagos has over 14.3 million metro population. The city has 30 per cent active payments terminal penetration. In the country, Lagos has more banked population at 64 per cent than other states. It has a high number of bank branches. It has more automated teller machines than other states. It has more mobile money and bank agents. The Fintech experts then concluded that Lagos “is ripe for a cashless scheme”. You don’t think so? You must be dreaming.

Well, kindly return to earth. According to the Fintech mavens, Lagos has a widespread telecommunication infrastructure coverage. It has a strong retail and transport networks. The city has a growing adoption for digital finance. It has robust participation in the Fintech ecosystem. It has a significant diversity of financial technology service players more than any other states. If you are still seeing Lagos through your defective lens, you would not see these milestones.

All of the Fintech specialists at the highly cerebral Lagos Fintech Week agreed that Lagos is an international business hub. They envisioned that Lagos needs a cashless revolution. The cashless revolution, they chorused, should ideally be driven by local needs. It should also reflect global directions for payment systems. It should have a technology stack. It should have products architecture and access models.

All of the Fintech specialists at the highly cerebral Lagos Fintech Week agreed that Lagos is an international business hub.

With its inadequacy, Lagos has a higher rate of financial access and inclusion than the rest of the country. Maybe that is why Lagos has more economic and money laundering activities than other states, too? You will not scrutinise that part because it fits into the picture in your mind. Maybe that is how the mind works. But that is not how Lagos works. Lagos is still under construction, and under those sand dunes, have emerged significant signposts.

Snuggling on Lagos Island is the first unicorn in Africa. Interswitch is not a pushover. Visa has come to eat at the dining table of Interswitch. That story has been told over and over. However, another impactful Fintech firm, the only one with its own magnificent edifice, SystemSpecs, resides on the Lagos Island, Lekki. In fact, SystemSpecs came from the dirt of Obalende. For many years, SystemSpecs reigned as the Obalende King.

Today, it has relinquished that title. SystemSpecs, a 28-year old Fintech company, has evolved from a 5-man software firm to an African technology giant with ground-breaking solutions including Remita, HumanManager and Paylink. It has become the epitome of what every Fintech startup aspires. This is a fact. You cannot argue this one.

In addition, it is what you have inside of you that shines through when you reside in Lagos. If you can engineer software that can perform magic and makes Mitchell Elegbe and John Obaro green with envy, Lagos will help you birth it, nurture it and transform it into a unicorn. On the other hand, if you are a tiger, that is what Lagos will feed.

Lagos has a challenge for the next Fintech startup. What does it have for you? Paystack has conquered its own hurdle. That is why the managers of Strike was mesmerised by the amazing works Shola and Ezra have put into Paystack. Paystack stacked its prevue so high so that Strike paid so much to acquire it. Flutterwave may be headquartered in California, it is a perfect extract from the imperfection of Lagos. Lagos has everything. Fintech, filth and funk. What does Lagos has for you?

*Olaegbe (psalmsonolaegbe@gmail.com; Tweet @RarzackO   Skype:rarzackolaegbe)

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