Customize Consent Preferences

We use cookies to help you navigate efficiently and perform certain functions. You will find detailed information about all cookies under each consent category below.

The cookies that are categorized as "Necessary" are stored on your browser as they are essential for enabling the basic functionalities of the site. ... 

Always Active

Necessary cookies are required to enable the basic features of this site, such as providing secure log-in or adjusting your consent preferences. These cookies do not store any personally identifiable data.

No cookies to display.

Functional cookies help perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collecting feedback, and other third-party features.

No cookies to display.

Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics such as the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.

No cookies to display.

Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.

No cookies to display.

Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with customized advertisements based on the pages you visited previously and to analyze the effectiveness of the ad campaigns.

No cookies to display.

  • Lagos, Nigeria
  • Info@bhluemountain.com
  • Office Hours: 8:00 AM – 5:00 PM Mon - Fri
  • December 6 2023

👨🏿‍🚀TechCabal Daily – Y Combinator-backed fintech shuts down

In partnership with Share this newsletter: Lire en Français اقرأ هذا باللغة العربية Good morning  Yesterday, we told you about how Kenyan online marketplace Sky.Garden is bouncing back through a $1.63 million acquisition deal with Lipa Later. But, we know we left you on the edge about the nitty-gritty details of the deal. No teasing here—we just wanted to get all the details right! Our Kenyan reporter, Kenn Abuya wrote all about it here. In today’s edition Nigerian fintech Pivo shuts down Jumia Nigeria’s CEO steps down Lidya shutters European business Bitmama to acquire Moniepoint-backed fintech Kenya halts roll-out of digital IDs The World Wide Web3 Opportunities Fintech Pivo, a Nigerian supply chain fintech, shuts down Co-founders of Pivo; Nkiru Amadi-Emina and Ijeoma Jacquelyn Akwiwu Pivo, a Nigerian fintech startup that raised more than $2.6 million from Y Combinator and over 17 other investors, has closed shop. Despite its promising start, the company had to cease its operations one year after raising a $2 million seed round in November 2022, earmarked for extending operations into East Africa and introducing payment-focused products. Why? The CEO, Nkiru Amadi-Emina, did not deny the shutdown but refused to disclose specific details, stating that she would “be happy to do so at a later date”. Co-founded by Nkiru Amadi-Emina and Ijeoma Akwiwu in July 2021, Pivo offered banking services to small supply chain businesses in Nigeria’s supply chain sector. With two fintech verticals—Pivo Capital, a lending product, and Pivo Business, a business banking product—the company claimed to have disbursed over $3 million in loans and processed more than $4 million through Pivo Business.  Zoom out: Pivo’s closure adds to the growing list of African startups that have shutdown in 2023. Startups like Lazerpay, 54gene and Hytch shutdown in April, September and February respectively, due to the economic downturn and a rising funding gap. Access payments with Moniepoint Moniepoint has made it simple for your business to access payments while providing access to credit and other business tools. Open an account today here. E-commerce Jumia Nigeria’s CEO steps down Jumia Nigeria’s new CEO Sunil Natraj Sunil Natraj will replace Massimiliano Spalazzi as CEO of Jumia Nigeria. Massimiliano Spalazzi, the current CEO of e-commerce giant Jumia Nigeria, will be stepping down in December 2023 after working with Jumia Group for 11 years. Spalazzi, one of Jumia’s pioneer employees, will be replaced by Sunil Natraj.  Natraj, who previously headed Jumia Ghana’s business arm, will start in his new role in January 2024. Natraj’s appointment comes at a time when Jumia suffered a decline in growth from its single biggest market—Nigeria—after the country’s unstable currency exchange system affected Jumia and other businesses. Jumia recently turned its focus to rural markets in Nigeria to ensure profitability.  Another view: Natraj’s appointments mirror the current reshuffling process to get Jumia on track towards profitability. The e-commerce board appointed Francis Durfay as the company’s CEO in February. Dufay was announced as the acting CEO after the exit of Jeremy Hodara and Sacha Poginonnec as co-CEOs. Since Francis Dufay took the helm at Jumia, he has implemented painful cuts across the company, including laying off 900 (20%) employees. Also, 60% of Jumia’s top management team who work from the UAE were mandated to work from the continent to save costs. Dufay also earns less than previous CEOs.  Lights out: Over the years, Jumia has consistently splurged on marketing and advertising costs as it positions itself in the African market. However, the company reduced its advertising spend by 40% early this year to ensure profitability. The company is looking to expand into more Nigerian cities in the coming months as it focuses on rural markets to ensure profitability.  Fintech Lidya shuts down European business, shifts focus to Nigerian market Co-founders of Lidya; Tunde Kehinde and Ercin Eksin Lidya, a small and medium enterprise (SME) lending company, has decided to exit its European lending operations in Poland and the Czech Republic.  The seven-year-old company aims to redirect its efforts towards growing its new credit assessment and loan recovery offering for the Nigerian market. Why? Lidya decided to leave the European market three years after it expanded its small business lending services to Eastern Europe. The company is now channelling its focus on Lydia Collect, a loan recovery tool initially developed last year, for its in-house SME lending operations. Tunde Kehinde, Lidya’s co-founder and CEO, expressed confidence in Nigeria’s tech-savvy lending ecosystem, calling it the “ideal launchpad” for Lidya’s solutions that support data-driven decision-making. Lidya Collect, built upon Nigeria’s Global Standing Instruction (GSI) technology, will serve as a robust last-resort system, enabling connected lenders to directly debit accounts of loan defaulters in other banks. The company collaborated with the Nigerian Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS) to integrate Lidya Collect with the existing GSI infrastructure. A new product: Additionally, Lidya unveiled Lidya Bridge, a credit assessment offering introduced in October 2023. Lidya Bridge will analyse 300 data points from borrowers’ bank statements, streamlining the process of evaluating new loan customers.  The big picture: Lidya will focus on selling Collect and Bridge to micro-finance institutions and other financial service providers, with over 50 lenders and microfinance banks already signed up for the service. Since its inception in 2016, Lidya has raised a total of $16.5 million in funding, with its latest being $8.3 million in Pre-Series B funding. Introducing Discount Codes Boost sales with percent-based, fixed rate, and free shipping discounts when you sell with Paystack Storefronts and Product Links. Get started here → Acquisition Bitmama in advanced talks to acquire Payday in $1 million equity deal Nigerian fintech Payday, after securing a $3 million seed funding round in February, is now in talks to be acquired by Bitmamaa Nigerian crypto exchange startup. This news comes three months after Payday reportedly began exploring acquisition opportunities. What’s the price? Bitmama is offering Payday investors $1 million worth of equity in the crypto company at a $30 million valuation. This acquisition would be mutually beneficial, as Payday would gain access to

Read More