By: Curtis Akunfu
Another African startup has shut down after raising millions of dollars.
This time, it’s Okra — the Nigerian fintech that pioneered open banking across the continent.
They raised $16 million. Built a cloud platform. Expanded. And now… shut down.
This isn’t just about one company. It’s a reflection of our continental priorities.
We keep funding abstraction over foundation.
Fintech is not the enemy — farmers absolutely need mobile payments, digital wallets, and inclusive credit scoring. But we are over-digitising a continent that still can’t process what it grows.
We’re building APIs and cloud-native banking systems… while exporting raw cashew, soy, sesame, cocoa, maize, shea, and coffee — only to import the finished products at ten times the price.
Before another startup raises millions to build another financial layer, let’s ask:
What if that $16 million had gone into:
- Agro-processing plants for cashew, cocoa, soy, maize, coffee, and sesame?
- Roasters, crushers, presses, dryers — infrastructure that powers real transformation?
- Traceability systems to ensure transparency, food safety, and ethical sourcing?
- ESG-compliant value chains that meet the standards of global buyers and climate-conscious markets?
- International certifications like HACCP, BRC, Organic, Fairtrade, and FDA that unlock premium export potential?
We don’t just need software.
We need factories. We need standards. We need systems that make our agricultural products globally competitive.
Africa will not be transformed by code alone.
It will be transformed by turning what we grow into what we consume — and what the world demands.
Let’s rethink what we’re funding.
