The Flip

I Went to Nigeria to Explore How Global Trade Really Works

The Flip Media — Wed, 01 Apr 2026 17:58:34 +0200

In Lagos' Computer Village, Nigeria's largest electronics market, everything is imported from China. But how merchants access dollars and pay their suppliers is a challenge.

Nigeria imports $20 billion from China every year, yet dollar access problems and legacy banking systems create friction for those doing global trade.

So how do countries like Nigeria and China trade with each other?

In this episode, we head to Lagos, Nigeria, to see it firsthand - how money moves, and how new technologies like stablecoins are facilitating global trade.

In this episode of Money Trails, presented by Stellar Development Foundation.

Watch the full episode on YouTube.

00:00 - Inside Computer Village
01:22 - Everything is imported from China
02:32 - The Nigerian Economy
03:56 - Importing phones with WeChat and Alipay
05:18 - No one uses the banks for FX
06:17 - Naira volatility, explained
09:10 - Informal and parallel economies
09:38 OTC Traders Fill the Gap
11:21 - Are stablecoins the future of global trade?
14:43 - Next stop: Syria

Our Links -
🎥 YouTube - https://youtube.com/@thefliphq
🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/thefliphq
👥 LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/company/thefliphq/
📸 Instagram - https://instagram.com/thefliphq
💻 Website - https://theflip.africa

Why Getting Paid Costs More in Emerging Markets

The Flip Media — Thu, 29 Jan 2026 17:53:58 +0200

If you're a freelancer or a remote worker from the global south, you likely have a harder time getting paid and participating in the global economy.

Maybe a global payments company doesn't operate in your country. Maybe they banned your account or froze your funds.

Remote workers and freelancers from emerging markets often have to jump through hoops to get paid, incurring additional costs along the way.

Meanwhile, more people than ever are working online, and more of these workers are coming from the developing world. Yet the global payments system is often failing the very people who rely on it the most.

Are stablecoins the solution?

This episode of Money Trails is presented by Stellar Development Foundation.

Watch the full episode on YouTube.

00:00 - The global payments system is broken
01:34 - Freelancing and remote work payment issues
03:38 - Why does this happen? De-risking
04:29 - 1.2 billion people are reaching working age in emerging markets
05:15 - Stablecoins to the rescue?
07:09 - There is a tax on the global south
09:03 - Next episode, we head to Lagos, Nigeria

I Went to Bolivia Where Businesses Survive on Stablecoins

The Flip Media — Tue, 02 Dec 2025 15:00:00 +0200

Bolivia is facing a severe economic crisis. The country is literally running out of dollars. Their foreign reserves have collapsed from $15 billion a decade ago to just $50 million today.

In June 2024, Bolivia legalized cryptocurrencies, and digital asset transaction volume exploded - growing over 500 percent in the past year.

To participate in the global economy, businesses are turning to stablecoins for access to dollar assets.

From Binance peer-to-peer trading to stablecoin-powered credit cards, we explore how people survive when their country runs out of dollars, and how stablecoins are being used for global spending.

Watch the full episode on YouTube.

00:00 - Bolivia ran out of dollars
02:06 - Stablecoins to the rescue
03:25 - How did Bolivia get here?
04:11 - Bolivia's parallel economy
06:24 - Meru
09:55 - What happens when a country runs out of dollars

Inside Argentina's $300 Billion Parallel Economy

The Flip Media — Tue, 04 Nov 2025 15:00:00 +0200

Argentina's decades-long economic crises and hyperinflation has a major impact on how Argentine's participate in the economy.

The recent story that's been told about Argentina is that people are adopting stablecoins to protect against inflation and currency devaluation. But that's only part of the story...

The real story involves long-standing distrust of government and the banks, and overbearing taxes that drive Argentinians to the informal economy.

While stablecoin volumes in Argentina surpass $90 billion, Argentina still has over $200 billion in cash circulating in the country, and hidden under mattresses. It's the second-largest holder of US Dollar cash, behind the US itself.

In this episode of Money Trails, presented by @StellarDevelopmentFoundation , we explore why Argentines keep their money outside of the formal system, and why they are increasingly adopting stablecoins.

In this episode, we’re joined by Manuel Beaudroit, the Co-founder & CEO of Belo.

Watch the full episode on YouTube.

00:00 - Argentina's economic crisis
01:45 - Arbolitos on Calle Florida
02:48 - The Blue Dollar
04:01 - Distrust and taxes
07:20 - Why Argentines keep their money outside the formal economy
09:50 - Why Argentina's parallel economy still thrives
10:43 - Cuevas, Argentina's informal exchange houses
13:21 - Why Argentines are adopting stablecoins
15:43 - Subscribe!

What If You Could Send Money Across Borders as Fast as a Text?

The Flip Media — Tue, 16 Sep 2025 12:00:00 +0200

This year, $160 billion in remittance payments will be sent from the US to Latin America. $65 billion will be sent from the US to Mexico, the world's largest remittance corridor.

Yet, the majority of payments will be sent via brick-and-mortar stores like Western Union or Moneygram.

The future of payments is already here, yet most people are queuing in line, paying in cash, taking a photo of their receipt, and sending it to their families on WhatsApp for collection in their home country.

If we can send receipts over WhatsApp, why can’t we send money too?

That same question was the motivation for Félix, an AI-powered chatbot that replicates the trusted agent experience om WhatsApp.

It’s a user experience made possible by stablecoins.

In this episode of Money Trails, presented by Stellar Development Foundation, our user-centric series on global stablecoin adoption, we explore how immigrants send money back home.

This episode of Money Trails is sponsored by Rain Cards.

In this episode, we’re joined by

Manuel Godoy - Co-founder & CEO, Felix
Farooq Malik - Co-founder & CEO, Rain

00:00 - Intro
01:06 - Sending money in Jackson Heights
03:22 - Félix CEO Manuel Godoy
04:54 - How Félix works
06:20 - Stablecoin-powered remittance payments
08:49 - Spending money in Mexico
11:38 - Subscribe!

NBA Africa's Biggest Success | The Khaman Maluach Story

The Flip Media — Thu, 26 Jun 2025 15:52:28 +0200

Watch this episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/qoA105xnIpU

Khaman Maluach was just drafted 10th overall in the NBA Draft. He’s a South Sudanese refugee who grew up in Uganda and only started playing basketball when he was 13 years old.

After first playing the game at Luol Deng’s basketball camp, Maluach played at the NBA Academy in Senegal, and played three seasons in NBA Africa’s Basketball Africa League, before signing with Duke University.

He’s the first player from the BAL to be drafted into the NBA. And as we continue to invest in talent on the African continent, there will be more players like Khaman Maluach playing in the league in the future.

Our Links -
🎥 YouTube - https://youtube.com/@TheFlipAfrica
💻 Website - https://theflip.africa
🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/theflipafrica
👥 LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/company/theflipafrica/
📸 Instagram - https://instagram.com/theflipafrica

The Real Reason People Are Using Stablecoins

The Flip Media — Thu, 29 May 2025 17:39:19 +0200

Watch this episode on YouTube.

2025 is the year of stablecoins.

Transaction volumes have grown to over $33 trillion in the past 12 months. The top Dollar-denominated stablecoins are the 17th largest holder of US treasuries globally. Tether, issuer the largest stablecoin by volume, USDT, announced $13 billion in net profit in 2024. Circle, the USDC issuer, is going public.

But what got the hype train going was Stripe’s acquisition of the startup Bridge for $1.1 billion.

And all of Bridge’s product market fit is coming from emerging markets and outside the US.

But why?

This is the first episode in The Flip’s new human-first series on stablecoin adoption from the rest of the world. Stablecoins are solving everyday problems for people in markets where there’s import deficits, currency devaluation, insufficient banking infrastructure, and more.

This series will bring to life these conditions and humanize the onchain data.

00:00 - Intro
01:15 - Zach Abrams - Bridge
02:35 - Stablecoin adoption
03:27 - All of Bridge’s product market fit comes from outside the US
05:19 - Why do people want stablecoins?
08:42 - Subscribe!

Why the NFL is Bringing American Football to Africa

The Flip Media — Wed, 23 Apr 2025 13:30:00 +0200

There are 1,696 active players in the NFL. Just 138 are African.

But if it were up to Osi Umenyiora, 11-year veteran and 2-time Super Bowl Champion, there would be many more.

Osi is the Founder of The Uprise, the NFL's lead in Africa, and he's pioneering American football on the African continent.

At the NFL's camp in Lagos, Nigeria, young athletes are vying for a shot to join the NFL Academy in London or to go straight to the League through the International Player Pathway Program.

But many of them have never played American football before.

So why is the NFL hosting camps in Africa? Is there really any shot of these players making it to the NFL?

00:00 - The NFL is in Lagos, Nigeria
00:30 - Osi Umenyiora is bringing football to Africa
02:05 - The NFL wants the best talent in the world
03:55 - Creating opportunities for African talent

How We're Helping African Farmers Grow

The Flip Media — Tue, 25 Feb 2025 14:12:22 +0200

Farming is the number one source of employment in Africa, yet its agricultural productivity is the lowest of any region in the world.

The opportunity is immense—60% of the world’s uncultivated arable land is on the continent—but rural communities are suffering from a lack of economic opportunity.

So young Africans are building innovative solutions to tackle the problems that are impacting their families and communities.

Wissal Ben Moussa is the Co-founder & R&D Officer of Sand To Green, a Moroccan startup pairing regenerative agroforestry techniques with data and technology to turn the desert green.

Samuel Rigu is the Co-founder & CEO of Safi Organics, a Kenyan company employing a decentralized process to locally manufacture organic fertilizers.

Francis Nderitu is the Founder of Keep IT Cool, a recent Earthshot Prize winner, building cold chain storage to reduce post-harvest losses in Kenya.

00:00 - Africa has the lowest farming productivity in the world
01:08 - Sand to Green is reversing desertification in Morocco
04:30 - Safi Organics is manufacturing organic fertilizers in Kenya
07:23 - Keep IT Cool is reducing post-harvest loss in Kenya
10:15 - Solving problems for their local communities

Check out more episodes of The Greenprint here.

This episode was produced as part of our series on climate action in Africa, The Greenprint, in partnership with Catalyst Fund, Delta40, Africa Climate Ventures, and AgBase - an initiative powered by Briter and Mercy Corps AgriFin.

AgBase is a business intelligence platform offering real-time data, market insights, and a centralised hub for information on agtech and foodtech across emerging markets. This initiative, backed by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO), and hosted by Briter Bridges in partnership with MercyCorps AgriFin, is dedicated to bolstering the knowledge framework essential for catalysing investments in digital and technology-driven solutions, with an underlying mission is to transform the lives of smallholder farmers and boost socio-economic growth.

Delta40 is a venture studio and venture capital fund supporting diverse founders leading ventures in energy, agriculture, and fintech, with a special focus on supporting African and female entrepreneurs. Beyond capital, they provide hands-on support from experienced operators & investors to drive growth from idea to pan-African scale.

Africa Climate Ventures is a pioneering venture builder working to build a portfolio of climate businesses on the continent. ACV invests to bring proven global climate technology to Africa, accelerate and de-risk the continental expansion of technologies and business models that have gained traction in one or a few African market(s), and add carbon revenue streams to existing African businesses with the potential to scale climate-positive solutions.

‍Catalyst Fund is a venture capital fund and venture builder, investing for a climate resilient future in Africa. They combine capital and a hands-on venture-building approach at the pre-seed stage, to partner with visionary founders who are developing climate adaptation solutions that enhance the resilience of communities and the planet.

This episode is made possible through a partnership with Prosper Africa’s Catalytic Investment Facility. Aimed at boosting investment and innovative climate adaptation and resilience ventures across Africa, The Catalyst Fund is one of the grantees under Prosper Africa's Catalytic Investment Facility. Prosper Africa is a Presidential-level national security initiative aimed at strengthening the strategic and economic partnership between the U.S. and Africa by catalyzing transformative two-way trade and investment flows.

What We Get Wrong About Climate Financing

The Flip Media — Thu, 06 Feb 2025 12:00:00 +0200

Reports suggest that climate change is set to cost the global economy $38 billion per year by 2049. Emerging markets need close to $2.4 trillion per year by 2030 to meet the climate goals. That's 4 times what is currently invested.

But high capital costs are stalling clean energy investment across Africa. If you want to build a renewable energy project in Sub-Saharan Africa, the weighted average cost of capital would be up to 4x as much as the same project in Western Europe or the US, due to the real and perceived risks of investing on the continent.

If the world invests in renewables and green technology in Africa at Africa's cost of capital, it will underinvest in green energy assets.

00:00 - The climate funding gap
01:01 - It's 4x more expensive to build an energy project in Africa
02:10 - The cheapest energy is where there is high energy density
03:26 - Startup financing needs
06:23 - Addressing funding challenges at the multinational level

Check out more episodes of The Greenprint here.

This episode of The Greenprint was produced in partnership with Catalyst Fund, Delta40, and Africa Climate Ventures.

Can Solar Power Solve Nigeria's Energy Crisis?

The Flip Media — Tue, 21 Jan 2025 13:00:00 +0200

Nigeria’s energy crisis has persisted for decades. Africa's largest country is largely powered by fuel generators. They're noisy, dirty, and bad for the environment. But they also provide power to millions of people in a country with an unreliable grid.

The removal of Nigeria's long-standing fuel subsidy in 2023 caused the price of fuel to quadruple, leaving Nigerian consumers searching for options. And many are going solar.

So while economic considerations have largely driven Nigeria's transition to solar power, it has positive climate implications too.

But why is the grid so broken? How can it be fixed? And is decentralized solar energy an adequate solution to solve Nigeria's energy crisis?

00:00 - To know Nigeria is to know blackouts
01:28 - How Nigeria is powered today
02:11 - Why the grid is broken and how to fix it
05:17 - Nigerians are making the switch to solar
09:12 - The need for climate resilience

Check out more episodes of The Greenprint: https://theflip.africa/the-greenprint

This episode of The Greenprint was produced in partnership with Catalyst Fund, Delta40, and Africa Climate Ventures.

How Africa’s Green Industries Could Save the Planet

The Flip Media — Mon, 09 Dec 2024 16:18:56 +0200

Can Africa be a leader in the global fight against climate change?

While the continent has contributed just 3 percent to global carbon emissions, it is the most impacted by climate change. But it also has a range of natural endowments that leave it well-positioned to build green industries that will have a positive economic impact locally and can play a significant global role in getting to net zero.

In this episode, we're joined by three Africa-focused climate founders solving local problems with global implications.

00:00 - Africa is the most impacted by climate change
01:18 - The opportunity to build industries powered by renewable energy
01:51 - Great Carbon Valley's Bilha Ndirangu
05:00 - Octavia Carbon's Duncan Kariuki
07:51 - Talus Renewable's Hiro Iwanaga

Listen to more episodes of The Greenprint: https://theflip.africa/the-greenprint

This episode of The Greenprint was produced in partnership with Catalyst Fund, Delta40, and Africa Climate Ventures.

This Funding Model is Helping Fight Climate Change

The Flip Media — Mon, 11 Nov 2024 10:27:26 +0200

These climate investors are funding climate startups using a hands-on venture-building model to support founders across Africa.

In this episode, we’re joined by James Mwangi from Africa Climate Ventures, Maxime Bayen from Catalyst Fund, and Lyndsay Holley Handler from Delta40.

We discuss why African ventures and climate startups, in particular, benefit from the venture building model; the limitations of the traditional two and twenty fund model in the African tech ecosystem; the types of founders and opportunities these investors are looking for; the pitch these investors are making to global investors for why they should back climate action across Africa; and, is Africa the most important region for global climate goals?

00:00 - Intro
01:20 - Why climate in Africa?
06:03 - The types of founders they're investing in
12:18 - Why the venture building model?
19:39 - Fund structures & models
35:30- The types of businesses & opportunities they're seeking
41:30 - Pitching Africa's climate story to global investors

This roundtable conversation was recorded during the 2024 Climate Week in New York City.

This episode was produced as part of our series on climate action in Africa, in partnership with Catalyst Fund, Delta40, and Africa Climate Ventures.

Catalyst Fund is a venture capital fund and venture builder, investing for a climate resilient future in Africa. They combine capital and a hands-on venture-building approach at the pre-seed stage, to partner with visionary founders who are developing climate adaptation solutions that enhance the resilience of communities and the planet.

How Moniepoint Powers Millions of Businesses Across Nigeria

The Flip Media — Thu, 29 Aug 2024 09:00:00 +0200

There are millions of Moniepoint point-of-sale terminals in use across Nigeria. These point-of-sale devices power Nigeria’s offline economy, and while there are many competitors in this space, Moniepoint appears to beating them all.

How did they do it? How did Moniepoint grow so quickly? And why has it become the preferred choice for agents and merchants across Nigeria?

In this episode, we hit the streets of Lagos with Ezekiel Sanni, Moniepoint's Senior Vice President of Distribution Network Sales.

Moniepoint has been recognized as Africa's fastest-growing fintech by the Financial Times in 2023 and 2024. Last year, they processed over $182 billion in payments.

Moniepoint (formerly TeamApt) was founded by Tosin Eniolorunda in 2015.

00:00 - Moniepoint is winning Nigeria's fintech battle
01:28 - What do agents want?
02:19 - Nigeria's banking challenges
03:34 - Moniepoint's business banking strategy
04:49 - Moniepoint's distribution strategy

Check out our roundtable conversation with Monieponit's CEO, Tosin Eniolorunda, Kuda's Babs Ogundeyi, and FairMoney's Laurin Hainy - https://theflip.africa/podcast/nigerian-neobank-roundtable-moniepoint-kuda-fairmoney

Our Links -🎥
YouTube - https://youtube.com/@TheFlipAfrica
💻 Website - https://theflip.africa
🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/theflipafrica
👥 LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/company/theflipafrica/
📸 Instagram - https://instagram.com/theflipafrica

How Africa's Fastest Growing Company is Helping Retailers Grow

The Flip Media — Thu, 25 Jul 2024 11:00:00 +0200

Small retailers in Nigeria power the economy. But they’re going through some tough times. Devaluation, food inflation, and overall poor economic conditions have made it especially hard for these small businesses to operate.

To better understand how retail works, and how these small businesses can grow, we hit the streets of Lagos with Deepankar Rustagi, CEO of OmniRetail.

OmniRetail was ranked Africa's #1 Fastest Growing Company in 2024 by Financial Times.

In this episode, Deepankar explains small retailers' working capital challenges and how OmniRetail is helping them grow their business by turning over their inventory faster.

00:00 - Intro
01:00 - Working capital
02:08 - Faster inventory turnover
02:48 - Lack of credit
03:39 - Understanding consumer demand
04:57 - Building a Systematically Important Platform

Read more from Deepankar - Rethinking Metrics in B2B Commerce: https://theflip.africa/newsletter/rethinking-metrics-in-b2b-ecommerce
Learn more about OmniRetail here: https://omniretail.africa

Our Links -
🔔 Youtube - https://youtube.com/@theflipafrica
💻 Website - https://theflip.africa
🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/theflipafrica
👥 LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/company/theflipafrica/
📸 Instagram - https://instagram.com/theflipafrica

An African Tech Exit - Selling Sendwave for $500 Million

The Flip Media — Thu, 13 Jun 2024 13:00:00 +0200

One of the African tech ecosystem's largest exits was the 2020 sale of Sendwave to WorldRemit for $500 million.

Sid Sridhar was Sendwave's Head of Business at the time, and in this episode, Sid shares his M&A lessons for the African tech ecosystem.

Sid is now the Head of Business at Wave, the mobile money company spun out of Sendwave that's competing head-on with the telcos in Francophone West Africa. Wave raised a $200 million Series A in 2021, valuing the company at $1.7 billion.

00:00 - Introduction
01:32 - Every deal is different
02:16 - Know the business model that you're building for
02:40 - Companies get bought not sold
03:41 - How to qualify a deal
04:53 - Be smart & strategic with information
05:31 - Be transparent
06:24 - Stay close to potential buyers
07:39 - Alignment with investors

Follow Sid on Twitter

Check out other episodes from the Fintech in Africa Summit:
Nigerian Neobank Roundtable: Moniepoint, Kuda, FairMoney
Why Are Cross-Border Payments So Hard?
Tackling Africa’s $330 Billion Credit Gap

Our Links -
🎥 YouTube - https://youtube.com/@theflipafrica
💻 Website - https://theflip.africa
🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/theflipafrica
👥 LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/company/theflipafrica/
📸 Instagram - https://instagram.com/theflipafrica

Tackling Africa’s $330 Billion Credit Gap

The Flip Media — Thu, 30 May 2024 09:00:00 +0200

There is a $330 billion credit gap, according to the IFC. But why is it so hard to lend in African markets?

We explore that question with Chijioke Dozie, Co-founder and CEO of Carbon, and Mark Straub, CEO of Smile Identity.

This episode was recorded live from the FT Partners Fintech in Africa Summit in New York City. Download their FinTech in Africa research report, published in March 2024.

00:00 - Introduction
01:36 - The credit infrastructure problems in Africa
02:28 - Carbon's approach to lending
03:51 - SmileID's perspective on credit infrastructure
08:10 - Ability to pay vs. willingness to pay
10:06 - Private sector solutions
17:36 - The challenges of scaling lending without infrastructure

Follow Chijioke on Twitter.
Follow Mark on Twitter.

This episode was the third in our series of interviews recorded live from the Fintech in Africa Summit.
Nigerian Neobanks with Moniepoint's Tosin Eniolorunda, Kuda's Babs Ogundeyi & Fairmoney's Laurin Hainy: https://theflip.africa/podcast/nigerian-neobank-roundtable-moniepoint-kuda-fairmoney
Cross-Border Payments with NALA's Benjamin Fernandes & GTXN's Dan Kleinbaum: https://theflip.africa/podcast/why-are-cross-border-payments-so-hard

African Small Businesses Have Many Challenges. Can These Platforms Help?

The Flip Media — Thu, 23 May 2024 12:00:00 +0200

In this episode, the third in our docuseries on jobtech platforms and the future of work, we dive deeper into the value chain, because the problems that small businesses have across the continent are multi-layered.

In an environment of demand constraints and a lack of infrastructure, platforms need to solve multiple problems across the value chain. This is what makes jobtech platforms so hard to build in Africa.

But for those who can solve problems across the value chain, it not only unlocks growth opportunities for their users, but it also unlocks additional revenue streams for platforms to achieve greater profitability.

Check out the first two episodes in this series:
What We Get Wrong About Jobs in Africa
The Future of Work Will Be Bootstrapped

00:00 - Intro
01:43 - Jobtech platforms in Africa need to solve multiple problems across the value chain.
02:31 - One sector with challenges across the value chain is fashion.
03:51 - How Fitted is solving problems for tailors in Nigeria.
05:51 - Unlocking revenue opportunities for SMEs and platforms alike.

Watch this episode on YouTube.
Learn more about the Jobtech Alliance.
Check out last year's podcast series on the future of work.

Why Are Cross-Border Payments So Hard?

The Flip Media — Thu, 16 May 2024 11:30:00 +0200

Benjamin Fernandes, the Founder and CEO of the remittance platform NALA, likes to say that payments are just 1% built in Africa.

Why are cross-border payments so hard?

In this episode, we're joined in conversation with Benjamin Fernandes and Dan Kleinbaum, a co-founder of Beyonic, which sold to Onafriq, and now the Founder of the FX platform GTXN.

This episode was recorded live from the FT Partners Fintech in Africa Summit in New York City. Download their FinTech in Africa research report, published in March 2024.

00:00 - Intro
01:29 - Payments are 1% built in Africa
06:32 - How to solve problems in Cross-Border payments
08:28 - Do we need more payment apps?
15:51 - Navigating regulatory challenges
17:03 - Why are Benji & Dan solving these problems?
20:30 - What's the cross-border payments pitch to investors?
25:39 - Benji & Dan turn the tables on Justin

This episode was the second in our series of interviews recorded live from the Fintech in Africa Summit. Our first episode was with the Nigerian Neobanks: https://theflip.africa/podcast/nigerian-neobank-roundtable-moniepoint-kuda-fairmoney

Episode Links:
Follow Benji on Twitter
Follow Dan on Twitter
Read Benji's Medium post: Are African Remittances Finished?

Nigerian Neobank Roundtable: Moniepoint, Kuda, FairMoney

The Flip Media — Thu, 09 May 2024 09:00:00 +0200

In this episode, we're joined in a panel conversation with the CEOs of three of Nigeria's biggest digital banks: Moniepoint's Tosin Eniolorunda, Kuda's Babs Ogundeyi, and FairMoney's Laurin Hainy.

This episode was recorded live from the FT Partners Fintech in Africa Summit in New York City. Download their FinTech in Africa research report, published in March 2024.

00:00 - Intro
01:18 - Moniepoint's distribution-first strategy
02:45 - FairMoney's credit-led approach
04:46 - Kuda's neobank strategy
06:48 - Banks, product, competition, expansion
25:45 - Growth, VC returns
33:56 - What does success look like?

The Future of Work Will Be Bootstrapped

The Flip Media — Thu, 18 Apr 2024 13:42:24 +0200

In our first episode of this series on jobtech platforms and the future of work, we argued that the future of work is a tech-enabled portfolio of work.

But what does a portfolio of work really look like? And what happens next?

We know we need to create more formal jobs in Africa, and we need to boost the productivity of the informal sector. But how do we get there?

Considering the context of the markets in question, the future of work isn’t going to be designed or endowed; it’s going to be bootstrapped.

00:00 - Intro
01:17 - Bootstrapping Development
01:53 - Bootstrapping a portfolio of work
05:48 - Pathways for jobtech users
06:45 - This is how development happens

Watch the first episode of this series on jobtech platforms: https://theflip.africa/podcast/what-we-get-wrong-about-jobs-in-africa

To learn more about the Jobtech Alliance, visit https://jobtechalliance.com

Check out last year's podcast series on the future of work: https://go.theflip.africa/future-of-work

Much Ado About the Media, Live from Lagos

The Flip Media — Thu, 04 Apr 2024 13:39:03 +0200

In January 2024, we hosted a live show in Lagos with The Subtext's Osarumen Osamuyi on the relationship between the tech ecosystem and the media.

It was a follow-up to a 2020 episode we published entitled Much Ado About the Media.

A lot of founders still feel the media is acting in bad faith amidst more accountable media coverage. In this episode, we explore this tension and have an important discussion with the ecosystem players themselves.

00:00 - Intro
01:22 - Reflecting on 2020's episode
08:20 - Paga's Tayo Oviosu's founder perspective
12:20 - TechCabal's Tomiwa Aladekomo's media perspective
19:04 - What about business models?
22:20 - Stears Nchedolisa Akuma on subscriptions
24:58 - Moniepoint's Didi Uwemakpan's marketing perspective
28:14 - The global perspective from TechCrunch's Tage Kene-Okafor
30:49 - FT's Aanu Adeoye
36:20 - How to give local context to a global audience
42:02 - Local vs. global media
45:43 - Who keeps the media in check?
46:36 - Editorial perspectives from TechCabal's Olumuyiwa Olowogboyega
50:03 - Negative stories about advertising partners
53:03 - Osarumen & Justin's retrospective

Much Ado About the Media, part one: https://theflip.africa/podcast/s2e9

Afrobeats, Basketball & Commerce

The Flip Media — Thu, 28 Mar 2024 13:38:46 +0200

Live from the BIG Summit, a platform hosted by investor and 2x NBA All-Star Baron Davis, at the 2024 NBA All-Star Game, a conversation with three operators connecting Africa to the world through culture and commerce.

In this conversation, we're joined by Clare Akamanzi, the CEO of NBA Africa, Abdul Karim Abdullah, the Founder and CEO of AfroFuture music festival, and entrepreneur and private equity investor Tuyee Yeboah.

00:00 - Intro
02:38 - NBA Africa
05:32 - AfroFuture
08:34 - Investing across Africa and the US
10:55 - Basketball's role in Africa's development
12:20 - Changing perceptions about the continent
17:35 - How do we get more investors involved?
21:20 - African talent

Episode Links -
AfroFuture - https://www.afrofuture.com/
BAL - https://bal.nba.com/
BIG Summit - https://www.teambig.io/

What We Get Wrong About Jobs in Africa

The Flip Media — Thu, 14 Mar 2024 09:00:00 +0200

The African continent has the highest levels of poverty, the lowest levels of formal employment, and its population is going to double in the next 30 years.

African countries need to create more jobs. But what kinds of jobs? And how?

What if I told you that the way governments and development organizations are trying to create jobs in Africa is all wrong?

To make a dent in this problem requires an understanding of the realities on the ground and how that has impacted the preferences of the labor markets in question.

The future of work, for Africans in particular, is not a formal job but a technology-enabled portfolio of work.

00:00 - Intro
01:36 - Informal is normal
03:14 - A portfolio of work
05:24 - Using jobtech platforms like Tendo for supplemental income
08:33 - To what degree can jobtech platforms address the underemployment issues across the continent?

To learn more about the Jobtech Alliance, visit https://jobtechalliance.com

Check out last year's podcast series on the future of work: https://go.theflip.africa/future-of-work

Our Links -

🔔 Youtube - https://youtube.com/@theflipafrica

💻 Website - https://theflip.africa

🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/theflipafrica

👥 LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/company/theflipafrica/

📸 Instagram - https://instagram.com/theflipafrica

Unlocking Gender-Smart Capital At Scale (2X Global's Jessica Espinoza)

The Flip Media — Thu, 07 Mar 2024 12:00:00 +0200

Despite research showing that female founders outperform their male peers, startups with a solo female founder or an all-female founding team raised a mere 2% of all the funding in Africa last year. There is a huge gender funding gap. How do we close it?

This episode is the last episode of a five-episode series on gender lens investing, co-hosted by Eloho Omame, Founding Partner of First Check Africa, an early-stage fund backing female-led startups. Each episode of this series will explore a different level of the fundraising value chain.

In this episode, we're exploring ecosystem and capacity building with Jessica Espinoza, the CEO of 2X Global, an organization aimed at unlocking gender smart capital at scale. Jessica chairs the 2X Challenge which has raised more than $27 billion of gender lens investments since its launch at the G7 Summit in 2018.

00:00 - Intro
02:10 - Unlocking gender-smart capital at scale
03:43 - What is gender-smart capital?
06:46 - Applying the 2X framework to investing
10:25 - Building the gender-smart investing ecosystem
19:52 - The primary issue is bias
22:54 - Mainstreaming gender-smart capital
25:55 - What is success for 2X Global?
33:29 - A retrospective conversation with Eloho & Justin

In Episode 1 of this series, we spoke to the founders: Bamboo's Yanmo Omorogbe & Uncover's Sneha Mehta: https://theflip.africa/podcast/why-is-only-2-of-funding-going-to-female-founders

In Episode 2 of this series, we spoke to angel investor Yemi Keri, Co-founder of Rising Tide Africa: https://theflip.africa/podcast/this-angel-investor-is-closing-the-gender-funding-gap

In Episode 3 of this series, we were joined by the fund managers: Alitheia Capital's Tokunboh Ishmael & TLcom Capital's Andreata Muforo: https://theflip.africa/podcast/investing-in-women-is-an-economic-imperative

In Episode 4 of this series, we spoke to an LP investing in the fund managers: Sam Akyianu, Managing Director of the Mastercard Foundation Africa Growth Fund: https://theflip.africa/podcast/mastercard-foundation-is-investing-150-million-into-20-gender-lens-funds

This series is created under the ScaleX project: Co-designing Solutions to close the early stage gender-financing gap in Africa, an initiative of Make-IT in Africa.

Make-IT in Africa promotes entrepreneurship and innovation ecosystems across Africa for green and inclusive development. Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH implements this project on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).

Our Links -

🔔 Youtube - https://youtube.com/@theflipafrica

💻 Website - https://theflip.africa

🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/theflipafrica

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📸 Instagram - https://instagram.com/theflipafrica

The Mastercard Foundation is Investing $150 Million into 20 Gender Lens Funds

The Flip Media — Thu, 29 Feb 2024 12:00:00 +0200

This episode is the fourth of a five-episode series on gender lens investing, co-hosted by Eloho Omame, Founding Partner of First Check Africa, an early-stage fund backing female-led startups. Each episode of this series will explore a different level of the fundraising value chain.

The Mastercard Foundation Africa Growth Fund is a $150 million fund-of-funds initiative investing in twenty gender lens funds, with a particular focus on closing the financing and support gap for females.

And in this episode, we're joined by Sam Akyianu, Managing Director of the Mastercard Foundation Africa Growth Fund.

00:00 - Intro
01:54 - Investing $150m in 20 vehicles
08:06 - Fund evaluation & investment decisions
23:09 - Measuring success
31:25 - Overmentored and underfunded?
35:04 - Getting other LPs onboard
36:43 - A retrospective conversation with Eloho & Justin

In Episode 1 of this series, we spoke to the founders: Bamboo's Yanmo Omorogbe & Uncover's Sneha Mehta: https://theflip.africa/podcast/why-is-only-2-of-funding-going-to-female-founders

In Episode 2 of this series, we spoke to angel investor Yemi Keri, Co-founder of Rising Tide Africa: https://theflip.africa/podcast/this-angel-investor-is-closing-the-gender-funding-gap

This series is created under the ScaleX project: Co-designing Solutions to close the early stage gender-financing gap in Africa, an initiative of Make-IT in Africa.

Our Links -

🔔 Youtube - https://youtube.com/@theflipafrica

💻 Website - https://theflip.africa

🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/theflipafrica

👥 LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/company/theflipafrica

📸 Instagram - https://instagram.com/theflipafrica

Investing in Women is an Economic Imperative (Tokunboh Ishmael, Andreata Muforo)

The Flip Media — Thu, 22 Feb 2024 16:44:03 +0200

This episode is the third of a five-episode series on gender lens investing, co-hosted by Eloho Omame, Founding Partner of First Check Africa, an early-stage fund backing female-led startups. Each episode of this series will explore a different level of the fundraising value chain.

In this episode, we're joined by the investors. Tokunboh Ishmael is the Co-founder and Managing Partner of Alithea Capital, a $100 million gender lens private equity fund. Andreata Muforo is a Partner at TLcom Capital, an early-stage venture capital fund with a 60% female partnership.

00:00 - Investing in women is an economic imperative

02:12 - Introducing Tokunboh

04:04 - An Alitheia-led thesis

05:36 - What does gender-lens investing look like in practice?

11:49 - What about the financial returns?

13:35 - Impact targets

17:24 - Are there enough women founders in the pipeline?

19:54 - Women are over-mentored and under-funded

23:48 - Is a female investor backing a female founder a negative signal?

26:53 - What does success look like?

29:47 - Introducing Andreata

31:15 - Why is a traditional VC fund like TLcom trying so hard to invest in more female founders?

33:03 - How VCs make investment decisions

36:18 - Only 25% of the pipeline has a female co-founder

40:44 - Is there a fundamental mismatch with VC and gender-lens investing?

42:31 - What does success look like? Part two

46:47 - A retrospective conversation with Eloho & Justin

In Episode 1 of this series, we spoke to the founders: Bamboo's Yanmo Omorogbe & Uncover's Sneha Mehta: https://theflip.africa/podcast/why-is-only-2-of-funding-going-to-female-founders

In Episode 2 of this series, we spoke to angel investor Yemi Keri, Co-founder of Rising Tide Africa: https://theflip.africa/podcast/this-angel-investor-is-closing-the-gender-funding-gap

This series is created under the ScaleX project: Co-designing Solutions to close the early stage gender-financing gap in Africa, an initiative of Make-IT in Africa.

Our Links -

🔔 Youtube - https://youtube.com/@theflipafrica

💻 Website - https://theflip.africa

🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/theflipafrica

👥 LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/company/theflipafrica

📸 Instagram - https://instagram.com/theflipafrica

This Angel Investor is Closing the Gender Funding Gap (Rising Tide Africa's Yemi Keri)

The Flip Media — Thu, 15 Feb 2024 14:11:51 +0200

This episode is the second of a five-episode series on gender lens investing, co-hosted by Eloho Omame, Founding Partner of First Check Africa, an early-stage fund backing female-led startups. Each episode of this series will explore a different level of the fundraising value chain.

In this episode, we're exploring Angel Networks with Yemi Keri, co-founder of Rising Tide Africa, a women-oriented angel network in Nigeria.

00:00 - Intro
01:42 - Rising Tide Africa
05:06 - Mentoring, Investment, Networking, Education
07:25 - Growing the pool of female angels
12:15 - Where are the interventions needed to close the gender funding gap?
14:13 - Yemi's investment approach
18:07 - What does success look like?
22:04 - Exits?
26:40 - A retrospective conversation with Eloho & Justin

Episode 1 of this series featured Bamboo's Yanmo Omorogbe & Uncover's Sneha Mehta: https://theflip.africa/podcast/why-is-only-2-of-funding-going-to-female-founders

This series is created under the ScaleX project: Co-designing Solutions to close the early stage gender-financing gap in Africa, an initiative of Make-IT in Africa.

Our Links -
🔔 Youtube - https://youtube.com/@theflipafrica
💻 Website - https://theflip.africa
🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/theflipafrica
👥 LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/company/theflipafrica
📸 Instagram - https://instagram.com/theflipafrica

Why is only 2% of funding going to female founders?

The Flip Media — Thu, 08 Feb 2024 13:48:30 +0200

This episode is the first of a five-episode series on gender lens investing, co-hosted by Eloho Omame, Founding Partner of First Check Africa, an early-stage fund backing female-led startups. Each episode of this series will explore a different level of the fundraising value chain.

In this episode, we're joined by the founders: Yanmo Omarogbe, the Co-founder and COO of the Nigerian investment platform Bamboo, and Sneha Mehta, the Co-founder and CEO of Uncover, a direct-to-consumer skincare brand in Kenya.

00:00 - Intro
02:00 - Yanmo & Sneha's fundraising experiences
13:19 - If tech companies raise more money, should more women start tech companies?
19:55 - What does "the ecosystem" need to be doing more of to help female founders?
25:26 - The added burdens for female founders
32:18 - What does success look like?
38:15 - Is money raised the right metric?
41:36 - The 2% Ceiling
47:30 - A retrospective conversation with Eloho & Justin

This series is created under the ScaleX project: Co-designing Solutions to close the early stage gender-financing gap in Africa, an initiative of Make-IT in Africa.

Our Links -
🔔 Youtube - https://youtube.com/@theflipafrica
💻 Website - https://theflip.africa
🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/theflipafrica
👥 LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/company/theflipafrica
📸 Instagram - https://instagram.com/theflipafrica

In Conversation with Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede (Coronation Capital, Access Bank)

The Flip Media — Fri, 26 Jan 2024 15:06:09 +0200

Today's guest is Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede, Chairman of Coronation Capital and former Group MD and CEO of Access Bank.

Aigboje is one of the most successful and esteemed businesspeople on the continent. In 2002, he led the acquisition of Access Bank, which under his 11-year leadership grew into the largest bank in Nigeria and one of the largest in Africa.

This wide-ranging discussion with the Chairman took place during the 2023 UN General Assembly in New York at an event hosted by the early-stage VC fund Microtraction, in which we were joined in conversation with Microtraction's Founding Partner, Kwamena Afful.

00:00 - Intro
02:59 - Banks as vehicles for economic empowerment
06:28 - Africa's credit gap
13:08 - Aigboje's view on transition
16:50 - The infrastructure for Africa's comparative advantages
19:22 - Africa's risk premium
25:12 - "Africa will solve its problems when it starts producing in Africa"
29:54 - Building digital economies
32:09 - One African currency?
38:21 - Engendering Africa's potential

Our Links -
🔔 Youtube - https://youtube.com/@theflipafrica
💻 Website - https://theflip.africa
🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/theflipafrica
👥 LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/company/theflipafrica
📸 Instagram - https://instagram.com/theflipafrica

Norrsken22: Investing $205 Million into African Startups

The Flip Media — Thu, 11 Jan 2024 10:04:52 +0200

Today's guests are Natalie Kolbe, Ngetha Waithaka and Lexi Novitske - Partners of the $205 million growth fund Norrsken22.

In this episode, we'll talk about investment strategy, valuations, perspectives for the ecosystem, exits, and much more.

00:00 - Intro
00:48 - Norrsken22's $205m fundraise
09:36 - Investment strategy & process
12:43 - Investing in asset-light marketplaces
14:37 - Expansion
18:04 - Investment theses
27:26 - Macro perspectives
30:22 - What are the partners focused on and thinking about?
35:23 - Exits
40:49 - What does success look like?

Our Links -
🔔 Youtube - https://youtube.com/@theflipafrica
💻 Website - https://theflip.africa
🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/theflipafrica
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📸 Instagram - https://instagram.com/theflipafrica

How to Pivot with Union54's Perseus Mlambo

The Flip Media — Thu, 14 Dec 2023 12:00:00 +0200

Today's guest is Perseus Mlambo, Co-founder and CEO of Union54, the developers of the social commerce app ChitChat.

The company started as Zazu, an agtech startup, which pivoted to Zazu the neobank. After issuing virtual cards for their users and seeing the demand other fintechs had for virtual cards, they pivoted to Union54 the card issuing API, which after massive traction in the fintech ecosystem and subsequent issues with fraud, has pivoted once more to ChitChat.

With many pivots come many lessons, and in this episode, Perseus shares his lessons and much more.

00:00 - Intro
03:01 - Perseus' Pivots
05:14 - Union54 and chargeback fraud
09:37 - Are Union54's problems solvable?
12:30 - Stakeholder management
19:03 - Alternative options for the company
22:27 - Perseus' conviction in the team & the opportunity
27:00 - Union54's newest product, ChitChat
30:18 - ChitChat's unique cap table structure
34:37 - What's the vibe in the ecosystem?
38:05 - The vision for the company

Episode Links -
Perseus' interview with TechCrunch
Follow Perseus on Twitter

Our Links -
🔔 Youtube - https://youtube.com/@theflipafrica
💻 Website - https://theflip.africa
🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/theflipafrica
👥 LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/company/theflipafrica
📸 Instagram - https://instagram.com/theflipafrica

MTN Nigeria's Adia Sowho: Sharing Is A Must

The Flip Media — Thu, 30 Nov 2023 15:57:18 +0200

Today's guest is Adia Sowho, one of the most experienced and thoughtful operators in the African tech ecosystem. After starting her career in consulting and telecommunications, Adia led growth at the digital credit startup Migo, before leading the turnaround as Interim CEO of the embattled agriculture finance company Thrive Agric.

In this episode, we'll learn from Adia about her lessons working across both big and small companies, about the importance of sharing those lessons learned, and so much more.

00:00 - Intro
03:41 - Sharing is a must
07:19 - Lessons from the Thrive Agric turnaround
09:54 - Why join MTN?
17:47 - Where are the Sheryl Sandbergs?
20:32 - Lessons from every stage of company
31:24 - Nigeria is a hard operating environment
34:37 - More money, more problems?
35:34 - Wisdom for startups
37:53 - Sharing is a must, part 2
46:19 - Adia has a Substack

References -
The Anatomy of a Turnaround - https://theflip.africa/newsletter/the-anatomy-of-a-turnaround
Adia's Substack - https://adia.substack.com/
Follow Adia - https://twitter.com/adiaspeaks
Full episode transcript - https://theflip.africa/podcast/mtn-nigeria-s-adia-sowho-sharing-is-a-must

Our Links -
🔔 Youtube - https://youtube.com/@theflipafrica
💻 Website - https://theflip.africa
🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/theflipafrica
👥 LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/company/theflipafrica
📸 Instagram - https://instagram.com/theflipafrica

Ham Serunjogi: How Chipper Cash is Surviving the Slowdown

The Flip Media — Thu, 16 Nov 2023 18:17:36 +0200

Today's guest is Ham Serunjogi, the Co-founder and CEO of Chipper Cash.

In 2021, Chipper raised $150 million Series C extension, valuing the startup at $2 billion, but has since cut its valuation, reportedly by 70 percent, has engaged in three rounds of layoffs, reducing its headcount by nearly 175 from its peak of 450, and has drastically pulled back from its aggressive growth and expansion strategies across the continent.

This conversation with Ham comes at an interesting time for Chipper and in the market, in general. Tough macro conditions on the continent, a slowdown of funding, tech layoffs. And at the same time, a lot of new and significant product launches for the company.

00:00 - Intro

03:05 - Long-term perspectives & time horizons

06:13 - Challenges operating across Africa

08:20 - Reflecting on Chipper's growth strategies

11:25 - Chipper ID

15:40 - Full-stack vs. focus

19:40 - Zoona acquisition & agent networks

26:04 - What lessons has Ham learned?

30:15 - Layoffs

31:45 - Capital allocation going forward

34:24 - Zepz acquisition?

37:07 - More lessons

43:39 - What does the future look like for Chipper?

🔗 Our Links
🔔 Youtube - https://youtube.com/@theflipafrica
💻 Website - https://theflip.africa
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📸 Instagram - https://instagram.com/theflipafrica

Making Borders Matter Less with Onafriq's Dare Okoudjou

The Flip Media — Thu, 02 Nov 2023 10:00:00 +0200

Today's guest is Dare Okoudjou, the Founder and CEO of MFS Africa, which this week has rebranded to Onafriq.

The new name represents a new chapter in the company, which is a very different looking company than when we first had Dare on the show back in 2020, after their acquisition of Beyonic. Since then, they've also acquired the card issuer, GTP in the US, and the agent network Baxi in Nigeria.

This current period of the African tech ecosystem is one of increased consolidation and company shutdowns amidst a fundraising downturn. And in this environment, there's perhaps no better and more experienced founder on the continent to learn from than Dare.

00:00 - Intro
01:48 - What's in a name?
04:26 - Cross-border payments
13:51 - Banks vs. Fintechs
15:24 - Onafriq's role in the payment value chain
20:27 - The people aspect of acquisitions
24:08 - On fintech consolidation
29:55 - Dare's take on the state of the market
35:03 - On fundraising
37:56 - The next 5 years for Onafriq
39:19 - Exits?

Investing in African Talent with YC's Michael Seibel & Microtraction's Kwamena Afful

The Flip Media — Thu, 19 Oct 2023 14:00:00 +0200

Today's guests are Michael Seibel, the Managing Director of Y Combinator, and Kwamena Afful, a Founding Partner of Microtraction.

Michael has been an avid supporter of the African tech ecosystem. Since his first trip to Lagos in 2016, and since Paystack joined YC's winter batch earlier that year, the number of African startups that have participated in the global accelerator has grown to 89.

And for Microtraction, the early-stage fund was founded in 2017, in part in relation to the increased global interest in the African tech ecosystem, where Microtraction's early financial support and local know-how could help fill the gap.

In this episode, we hear from Michael and Kwamena about their shared perspectives on the opportunities they see and their bet on African talent.

00:00 - Intro
03:08 - Honorary Chieftan Michael Seilbel
04:28 - Supporting the African tech ecosystem
07:41 - Fintech deep dive
10:19 - Software companies crossing borders
14:49 - Solving African problems
22:24 - What about the continent's population growth?
25:47 - Investing in African talent
29:38 - Creating jobs
31:44 - Connecting African talent to the global marketplace

Building a $1B Fintech in South Africa with Stitch CEO Kiaan Pillay

The Flip Media — Fri, 06 Oct 2023 10:00:00 +0200

Today's guest is Kiaan Pillay, the Co-founder and CEO of Stitch. My conversation with Kiaan comes on the heels of their recent fundraising announcement, a $25 million Series A extension led by the global fintech fund Ribbit Capital, which brings their total funding raised up over $50 million since the launch of the company in 2019.

In this episode, we talk to Kiaan about how they've gotten here, the intangibles of company building, their vision for the next generation of payments, and much more.

00:00 - Intro
03:29 - Stitch's $25 million Series A extension
05:51 - Why take money from Ribbit Capital?
07:00 - Stitch's growth
09:03 - Building products for enterprise
11:38 - A developer-centric org
13:23 - What products has Stitch built?
15:50 - Building a "next-generation" PSP
19:06 - Specialization vs. building the full stack
22:36 - How deep is the South African market?
29:48 - Stitch's company culture as a reflection of Kiaan
32:28 - How Stitch has recruited so well
35:20 - The perception of startups and equity in South Africa
37:15 - How Kiaan hired Stitch's president
39:26 - Investing in product and engineering talent
42:17 - Kiaan's evolution as a startup founder to CEO of a 70-person company
44:30 - The future for Stitch and fintech in Africa

Olugbenga 'GB' Agboola: Hard-Earned Lessons Building Flutterwave

The Flip Media — Fri, 22 Sep 2023 12:00:00 +0200

Today's guest is Olugbenga Agboola, better known as the one and only GB - the Co-founder and CEO of Flutterwave.

It's been a trying last year or so for Flutterwave with issues of fraud, allegations of impropriety inside the company, regulatory hurdles, and the general challenges of scaling a fintech in a tough operating environment.

Yet through it all, Flutterwave has "technology reach" in 34 countries, they've continued to ship new products beyond their core payments technology, including their rebranded remittance product Send App, and there are rumors swirling about the near-term timeline of their planned IPO.

In this episode, we'll hear from GB about many of his recent lessons, his perspectives on product and expansion strategy, and we'll ask many of the questions we've been wanting to hear from him about, including the big one about Flutterwave's IPO.

00:00 - Intro
03:13 - When is Flutterwave going public?
04:56 - What about the allegations?
09:24 - Sharing more for the benefit of the ecosystem
11:17 - Growth and expansion
16:13 - Did Flutterwave grow too fast?
21:09 - Fundraising and the African growth story
27:11 - GB's angel investing activities
30:29 - Lessons from GB's banking and big tech background
32:08 - Why did GB start Flutterwave in the first place?
33:49 - Are payments still broken?
35:55 - The vision for the future
38:02 - Final words of wisdom

The Future of Work Won't Look Like a Job

The Flip Media — Thu, 13 Apr 2023 07:00:00 +0200

The future of work in the African context is going to be a lot of different things. It mimics the nature of work itself for many individuals on the continent. They're taking this portfolio approach to work. Even in more "developed markets" we're seeing work become less formal and more flexible, as work becomes unbundled from employment. And this evolution of work itself provides a whole set of new challenges and opportunities.

So this episode is a retrospective on the entire season, in which we explore more of these questions about the future of work in this context. And joining The Flip's Justin Norman and Kandua's Sayo Folawiyo for this conversation is friend of The Flip, Chris Maclay, the Program Director for the Jobtech Alliance at Mercy Corps.

00:00 - Intro.
04:30 - Portfolio of work, earnings, stability, growth.
08:40 - Who gets to decide if a job is good or bad?
15:48 - Training, enablement, and platforms.
19:48 - The HustleOS and micro-franchising.
24:28 - The Future of Work is a portfolio of work.
29:54- Digital services for export.
32:57- Market sizing platform-enabled digital work.
41:39 - Should there have been an episode called The Future of Work is Universal Basic Income?

This season of The Flip is sponsored by MFS Africa.

The Role of Big Tech in the Future of Work

The Flip Media — Thu, 06 Apr 2023 08:03:28 +0200

There is a perception that there's a tech talent shortage in the African tech ecosystem, and that it's hard to find high-quality local talent.

There has been lot of conversation around the impact and role of Big Tech in the equation, which many felt were also culprits in driving up the price of talent in local marketplaces. In an environment of talent scarcity, there's been an upward pressure on salaries for talent of a certain caliber - which Big Tech can more readily afford compared to startups.

And while the supply-demand equation may be changing a bit in the context of recent market downturns and layoffs, this talent question is an important one for the continued development of the tech ecosystem.

So while we hear a lot from startups and founders in this episode, we're going to get a different perspective from the Big Tech companies themselves.

00:00 - Intro, there is a perceived talent scarcity problem in the African tech ecosystem.
04:37 - We start with Google, and their Managing Director for Sub-Saharan Africa, Nitin Gajria.
05:38 - Google is investing $1 billion in Africa over 5 years.
08:16 - Catherine Muraga is the Managing Director of the Microsoft Africa Development Centre in Nairobi.
11:49 - Talent scarcity and compensation.
13:59 - The competition for talent is global.

This season of The Flip is sponsored by MFS Africa.

Follow The Flip on Twitter @theflipafrica and subscribe to our newsletter The Flip Notes at https://theflip.africa/newsletter.

Stablecoins: Africa's Killer Crypto App

The Flip Media — Fri, 31 Mar 2023 07:00:00 +0200

We're dropping one more episode of our new show, crypto@scale, on The Flip's feed today. In this episode, we interview our first guests on what might be Africa's killer crypto app, stablecoins. According to data from Coinmetrics, cumulative Stablecoin volumes are at a $9 trillion annualized run rate, exceeding the volumes of all major card networks, except for Visa. Across the African continent, stablecoins are finding meaningful uptake, particularly in markets with low USD liquidity, or countries experiencing currency devaluation.

In today's episode, we're going to explore stablecoins in two parts. First, a global perspective with Joao Reginatto, the VP of Product at Circle, which is the company behind the USDC stablecoin. Second, a local perspective with Ngozi Dozie, Co-Founder of the African digital bank, Carbon.

This episode of crypto@scale is sponsored by Ripple. Across Africa, Ripple is partnering with local financial institutions and fintechs to bring the benefits of better cross-border remittances to the region. To learn more and get in contact with the Ripple team, head over to ripple.com.

00:00 - Intro. Stablecoins are the best thing since sliced bread, according to Ngozi Dozie.
02:23 - Introducing Joao Reginatto, VP, Product at Circle and product lead for USDC.
02:48 - What is a stablecoins?
04:21 - Why stablecoins?
13:33 - Not all stablecoins are equal. USDC is pegged 1:1 to the Dollar.
24:22 - What else is Circle focused on to broaden the adoption of USDC?
28:30 - Regulation.
32:10 - What's next for stablecoins?
36:25 - Joao's recommendations.
37:44 - Explooring stablecoins in the African context, with Carbon's Ngozi Dozie.
40:48 - Use cases: access to foreign exchange, hedge against devaluation.
44:05 - Carbon's FX and borrowing woes.
48:22 - Stablecoins as a platform.
52:27 - Challenges to stablecoin adoption.
1:00:06 - Ngozi is scared of the risk of capital flight.
1:03:46 - Ngozi's recommendations.

Introducing crypto@scale

The Flip Media — Tue, 28 Mar 2023 13:00:00 +0200

We interrupt this season on the future of work to drop a special episode today in The Flip’s feed. Introducing crypto@scale, a new show from The Flip, co-hosted by MFS Africa's Head of Crypto, Gwera Kiwana, and The Flip's Justin Norman.

crypto@scale is a pragmatic and hopefully hype-free exploration of the crypto ecosystem across the African continent.

If you enjoy this episode, please be sure to subscribe on your favorite podcast app or YouTube by searching for crypto@scale. We'll be dropping one more episode later this week and new episodes every other week thereafter.

Today's episode is a conversation recorded live from Nairobi last month. In this conversation, we share our perspectives on the sector, the use cases we find the most intriguing, the challenges we find most pressing, why we're launching a crypto show in the middle of a bear market, and what you can expect from us and this show.

For more from crypto@scale, follow us on Twitter @cryptoatscale.

00:00 - Intro
02:16 - Why are we launching this show
3:51 - The African market conditions and context for crypto's adoption
6:47 - Crypto use cases: stablecoins
10:36 - Regulation, centralization, and CBDCs
14:16 - DeFi and real-world assets
17:36 - Interoperability
19:26 - User experience and crypto education
22:17 - The DeFi Mullet
23:14 - Who's going to build and design for the future of African markets?
26:57 - Why the name crypto@scale? And what does crypto at scale mean to us?
29:15 - Prediction and wishlist

The Future of Work is Standardization

The Flip Media — Thu, 23 Mar 2023 07:55:00 +0200

Where there is fragmentation, informality, and a dearth of infrastructure, there are questions about what the path to formality and standardization will look like. One intriguing answer to that question is conversion franchising, where existing stores are converted into a franchise.

In the future of work context, are microenterprises, their owners, and their employees better off as converted franchisees?

This episode is a case study, with mPharma's Gregory Rockson.

00:00 - We begin this episode's exploration with a question - are subsistence farmers better off as employees of a commercial farm? With Twiga Foods' Peter Njonjo.
06:01 - What does the path to formalization and standardization look like across African markets and sectors? This episode is a case study of conversion franchising, with mPharma's Gregory Rockson.
We define conversion franchising, with help from Next Billion.
07:31 - mPharma started out as an asset-light platform.
09:38 - How mPharma's pharmacy-in-a-box program, QualityRX, got started.
15:38 - From converting franchises one-by-one to pursuing an M&A strategy to convert by the dozen.
21:15 - Is conversion franchising the future of work? Exploring why the model has worked so well for mPharma and pharmacy retail.
25:10- Gregory's theory of change.
27:12 - A retrospective conversation with Sayo Folawiyo and Justin Norman.

This season of The Flip is sponsored by MFS Africa.

The Future of Work is Vertical Platforms

The Flip Media — Thu, 16 Mar 2023 09:00:00 +0200

African markets are largely informal. So while our examination of workforce and training programs in the fast few episodes focused on formal and salaried jobs, we know that most Africans aren't going to get these types of jobs. So, our exploration of the future of work needs to span much further than that. Where there are no formal jobs, what does it look like to help stimulate the development of the informal sector and microenterprises? And what role does technology play?

In this context, we hear a lot about platforms and their role in creating jobs or income-generating opportunities. But what are the platforms actually good for? And what is their actual impact across African markets? In this episode, we're going to dig into the vertical platforms digitizing microenterprises across the continent.

3:46 - Defining jobtech platforms, with the Jobtech Alliance's Chris Maclay.

9:10 - What does it look like to build the infrastructure for microenterprises? With Kandua's Sayo Folawiyo.

12:16 - Exploring what verticalization looks like, and why it is necessary, considering the specifities of the home services sector.

17:25 - Vertical platforms can do a particularly good job at helping small businesses grow. We focus on a particularly large sector, the restaurant industry, with Caantin's Njavwa Mutambo.

21:20 - A retrospective conversation between Sayo Folawiyo and The Flip's Justin Norman.

Season 4 of The Flip is sponsored by MFS Africa.

Follow The Flip on Twitter @theflipafrica and subscribe to our newsletter The Flip Notes at https://theflip.africa/newsletter.

The Future of Work Needs Training

The Flip Media — Thu, 09 Mar 2023 07:47:07 +0200

Throughout this season, we've heard about this disconnect between supply and demand in the labor marketplace. It's often a skills and training issue.

Even where there are jobs, there's still this disconnect between demand and supply. But what are we training people for when there are few jobs or income-generating opportunities?

In the past few episodes of this season, we've explored the talent networks, the remote work platforms, the workforce enablement programs, and the multi-stakeholder initiatives to attract more global roles to the African continent. All of these interventions work to better connect supply and demand in the labor marketplace, and often there is a necessary training component to these interventions to equip African talent with the skills to do the jobs in question.

Edtech and tech-enabled skilling platforms have a role to play too, considering the size and scope of the challenge at hand. So in this episode, we're going to explore these programs working to tackle this problem at scale across the continent.

6:39 - We explore the disconnect between supply and demand in the labor marketplace, and the talent deficiency, with AltSchool Africa's Adewale Yusuf.
9:19 - The business model question is important. The recruiting agency model is at odds with the scale of impact programs seek to achieve, explains Stack Shift's Chris Quintero.
10:48 - Short-form programs need to get really good at developing curriculum that's in line with the demands of the market, especially if they're charging talent directly for their service. We hear from AltSchool Africa's Carlin Henikoff.
14:18 - We explore this challenge with a focus on tertiary education, with Kibo School's Ope Bukola.

Season 4 of The Flip is sponsored by MFS Africa.

Follow The Flip on Twitter @theflipafrica and subscribe to our newsletter The Flip Notes at https://theflip.africa/newsletter.

The Future of Work is Matching

The Flip Media — Thu, 02 Mar 2023 09:03:59 +0200

How do we tie interventions - whether traditional education or boot camps or training programs - to job outcomes? As we'll explore in this episode, it requires a demand-led approach and starts with employers.

In this episode, we're going to focus on the platforms doing the matching - those that are explicitly working to better connect supply and demand in the job marketplace, to achieve the employment outcomes we wish to see across the continent.

4:03 - We start our exploration on matching with the traditional jobs marketplaces, with The African Talent Company's Hilda Kragha.
6:26 - What kinds of roles are most in demand across the African content?
8:15 - Taking a demand-led approach, with Generation's Dr. Mona Mourshed.
14:05 - How do we get more employers to consider evolving their hiring practices, in the context of such an inefficient labor market?
17:34 - A retrospective conversation with The Flip's b-mic Sayo Folawiyo, and its Founder, Justin Norman.

Season 4 of The Flip is sponsored by MFS Africa.

Follow The Flip on Twitter @theflipafrica and subscribe to our newsletter The Flip Notes at https://theflip.africa/newsletter.

Building Africa's Outsourcing Industry - A Case Study

The Flip Media — Sun, 26 Feb 2023 09:22:37 +0200

What's particularly exciting about remote work is that it's not constrained by the demand from the local market. The jobs can come from anywhere in the world.

But it leaves us with a big question: why are global employers looking to hire African talent? And how can African markets take advantage of the opportunity and capture more of these jobs for its citizens?

This episode is another case study, on what it looks like to develop the global business services industry in a country like South Africa.

3:50 - Understanding how the global business services sector works, with Genesis Analytics' Mark Schoeman. What compels global organizations to open a delivery center in a given market?
8:27 - The most important consideration is the development of a scalable skills pipeline.
12:03 - The work largely becomes building the talent pipeline to service demand. We explore what that looks like with Harambee Youth Employment Accelerator's Sharmi Surianarain.

Season 4 of The Flip is sponsored by MFS Africa.

Follow The Flip on Twitter @theflipafrica and subscribe to our newsletter The Flip Notes at https://theflip.africa/newsletter.

The Future of Work is Remote

The Flip Media — Thu, 23 Feb 2023 09:43:00 +0200

We know that local economies are not going to create enough jobs or income-generating opportunities for such a rapidly growing African population. But at the same time, for countries in the global north whose working-age population is shrinking, where's the labor going to come from?

The solution to both of these problems might be the same: remote work.

In this episode, we're going to explore three buckets of remote work: the sexy, high-skilled remote work for product-led technology companies, the services-based IT work and business process outsourcing, and lastly, the increase of non-technical work that's delivered or fulfilled through digital means.

4:39 - Exploring high-skilled remote work for product-led technology companies, with Andela's Jeremy Johnson.

10:18 - Andela's model, and the type of talent they've worked with, has evolved since its founding in 2014.

12:30 - Product companies are looking for a specific caliber of talent from an experience level. What does this mean for the future of work in Africa if experience level is such an important requirement? This is where Fred Swaniker and the African Leadership Group come in, which is focused on connecting talent to global services companies.

19:28 - Whereas there's an ever-increasing demand for software developers, it takes a long time to train developer talent. So what about roles that aren't technical, but that can still be fulfilled with technology? We discuss with Shortlist's Paul Breloff.

23:11 - The talent networks are going to play an increasingly important role in bridging supply with demand, with a sector-specific focus. Consider the model "Andela for X".

25:03 - One vertical platform creating opportunities for non-technical talent is Caret, the Nigerian-based platform focused on customer success. We speak to its founder, Tolu Agunbiade.

28:22 - A retrospective conversation between The Flip's b-mic Sayo Folawiyo and Justin Norman.

Season 4 of The Flip is sponsored by MFS Africa.

Follow The Flip on Twitter @theflipafrica and subscribe to our newsletter The Flip Notes at https://theflip.africa/newsletter.

The Future of Work is Local Jobs - A Case Study

The Flip Media — Sun, 19 Feb 2023 09:00:00 +0200

In the first episode of this season, we argued that the future of work is a traditional development playbook. Considering the nature of most African markets today - informal, fragmented, subscale - and considering the fact that most employment comes from the agriculture sector, the traditional development playbook says that development starts by increasing the productivity of the informal sector and the agriculture sector, in particular.

These jobs are local jobs. In the context of Africa's rising population, millions of jobs need to be created and millions of local jobs will need to be created. But where are newfound local jobs going to come?

This episode is a case study. We'll explore the decentralized renewable energy sector, or DRE, to see what job creation from a nascent industry could look like.

Where there are sectors that are growing in importance in size, like the clean energy sector, how can African markets take advantage?

2:59 - The seeds of this episode's exploration were planted during a conversation with Shortlist's Paul Breloff. There are significant opportunities for sectors that are actually creating local jobs, and one sector they are bullish on is decentralized renewable energy.

4:28 - We dig into Power for All's Powering Jobs Census, to explore the scope of DRE's local job creation, with its research director, Carolina Pan.

10:51 - Exploring the second-order benefits of DRE, including indirect and induced jobs.

Season 4 of The Flip is sponsored by MFS Africa.

Follow The Flip on Twitter @theflipafrica and subscribe to our newsletter The Flip Notes at https://theflip.africa/newsletter.

The Future of Work Starts with Farming

The Flip Media — Thu, 16 Feb 2023 09:00:00 +0200

How are jobs created? While throughout the season we're going to be looking at that question primarily through a technology and innovation lens, in this episode we're going to start by exploring this jobs question through a more traditional development and economics lens. Because as we'll see, though the future of work might be remote work or the creator economy or any other nascent categories, the future of work in Africa is also a traditional development story. And it starts with farming.

4:11 - Africa's population is 1.4 billion people. It will double by 2050. Where are the jobs going to come from?
5:50 - Employment and informality, with development economist Louise Fox.
7:13 - The traditional development story starts with agriculture.
10:19 - Step two in the playbook is to invest in an export-oriented industry.
13:13 - Agriculture is an important sector to invest in from a development and job creation perspective. We speak to PE investor Jerry Parkes.
19:15 - The opportunity for an integrated approach across the value chain.
21:43 - A retrospective conversation with The Flip's Justin Norman and Sayo Folawiyo.

Season 4 of The Flip is sponsored by MFS Africa.

Follow The Flip on Twitter @theflipafrica and subscribe to our newsletter The Flip Notes at https://theflip.africa/newsletter.

Introducing The Flip Season Four: The Future of Work

The Flip Media — Thu, 09 Feb 2023 08:17:48 +0200

Introducing The Flip Season Four. African countries will be adding more people to the workforce in the next 10 years than the rest of the world combined. Where are the income-generating opportunities going to come from?

All this season, we're exploring the future of work.

Thanks to MFS Africa for their sponsorship of the entirety of Season 4 of The Flip.

Follow The Flip on Twitter @theflipafrica and subscribe to our newsletter The Flip Notes at https://theflip.africa/newsletter.

Sabi: Platforming Trade in Africa

The Flip Media — Mon, 27 Jun 2022 18:02:00 +0200

Read Sabi: Platforming Trade in Africa on The Flip.

We’re trying something new - an audio version of this week's partner edition of The Flip Notes, together with Sabi. Along with narration from The Flip's Justin Norman, you can hear Sabi’s co-founders, Anu Adedoyin Adasolum and Ademola Adesina, tell part of the story in their own words.

The Flip Notes Partner Editions are our occasional sponsored deep dive of a market or sector or business model, in partnership and behind the scenes with a company whose story benefits the ecosystem. You can read more about the process and guidelines of the partner editions here.

Subscribe to The Flip Notes: https://theflip.africa/subscribe.

In today's edition of The Flip Notes, we’ll tell Sabi’s story across a few different dimensions:

03:32 - Rensource and COVID’s Creative Destruction
05:45 - Understanding Value Chains
10:30 - The Product
13:42 - Platforms and The Bill Gates Line
15:52 - The Risks
18:04 - The Opportunity

The Ownership Economy

Seyi Taylor, Cuy Sheffield, Mr Eazi, Justin Norman, Sayo Folawiyo, Luke Kyohere — Thu, 17 Feb 2022 15:56:31 +0200

In this episode, we're going to explore web3 in the African context.

The premise of web3 technology, and tools like NFTs, in particular, is that they can and perhaps will create new paradigms and economic models and that these models will have positive implications for creators and fans alike. And we believe that the decentralized and permissionless nature of web3 blockchains and protocols can have especially positive implications across Africa and emerging markets, as well.

We're going to look at NFTs as a tool, and web3 as a technology and infrastructure that can create new and perhaps more beneficial and inclusive economic models than the status quo.

In commemoration of this episode, we're also minting a collection of AI artwork entitled Dawn of Bugs, with Senegalese digital artist Linda Dounia. For more information on the collection, the artist, where to mint, and our thoughts on value in the NFT and African art context, check out What is the Value of African Art? NFTs and Web3 Experimentation. The collection, Dawn of Bugs, is available at reserve auction on Foundation.

06:18 - Whenever there is a change in technology, like crypto and web3, there are ultimately new paradigms, as Seyi Taylor explains.
10:09 - For Africans, in particular, new paradigms means a permissionless opportunity to participate in the global digital economy.
12:36 - New paradigms allow for new communities and institutions, and new tools, like NFTs, that have the potential to create new economic models altogether.
14:11 - The opportunity for creators, in particular, is to move from an advertising-based to a commerce-based business model. We hear from Visa's Head of Crypto, Cuy Sheffield. And NFTs can be important for black and African creators in the context of their historical experience as under-monetized and under-credited producers of culture.
20:43 - We explore new communities and institutions like DAOs.
25:19 - Why are Africans particularly interested in building new institutions? A conversation with The Flip's b-mic, Sayo Folawiyo.

Select resources for this episode:

The Flip's Crypto Glossary
Why you can't just screenshot an NFT by Cleo Abram
Who Disrupts the Disruptors? by Packy McCormick
What Co-ops and DAOs Can Learn from Each Other by Austin Robey
NFTs and a Thousand True Fans by Chris Dixon
NFTs make the internet ownable by Jesse Walden
The Web3 Renaissance: A Golden Age for Content by Li Jin
Who will own the creator economy? A web2 vs. web3 showdown by Justine Moore

This season is sponsored by MFS Africa.

All this season, we’re exploring value chains. And in the payments value chain, no fintech has a wider reach on the continent than MFS Africa. Through their network of over 180 partners – MNOs, banks, NGOs, fintechs, and global enterprises – MFS Africa’s API hub makes connects over 320 million mobile wallets across 30+ countries in Africa.

The Creator Economy

Thu, 10 Feb 2022 12:04:05 +0200

African culture and content is taking over the world - from Afrobeats and amapiano, to Nollywood and Netflix originals, to fashion. To what degree can Africans monetize their creativity not only on the continent but globally? To what extent can Africans, as owners of culture and intellectual property, participate in the upside? And if content has been largely an export product, to date, how do *we* develop the local creator ecosystem, as well?

05:11 - A brief history of the creator economy. From aggregation theory to 1000 true fans.
07:59 - We start with the platforms, and TikTok's Boniswa Sidwaba.
11:11 - A challenge with creator monetization for African creators is the value of their audience to an advertiser. We hear from YouTuber Tayo Aina, with a cameo from another YouTuber, Hank Green.
15:33 - Because of limited monetization opportunities from the platforms directly, creators ink brand partnerships and sell direct to their audience.
19:49 - The challenge with monetizing an audience directly in a market like Nigeria is the poor macroeconomic situation. So content remains largely an export product, says Iroko's Jason Njoku.
23:17 - But the local fanbase is still incredibly important, and the local infrastructure still needs to be built. It's what Mr Eazi is trying to do for the music industry.
29:22 - How do we make sure value accrues back to the markets from which the content comes?
31:42 - Our retrospective conversation between The Flip's Justin Norman and Sayo Folawiyo.

Resources referenced in this episode:

What is Aggregation Theory? by Ben Thompson
1000 True Fans by Kevin Kelly
So...TikTok Sucks by Hank Green
Tayo Aina's YouTube Creator Academy

This season is sponsored by MFS Africa.

All this season, we're exploring value chains. And in the payments value chain, no fintech has a wider reach on the continent than MFS Africa. Through their network of over 180 partners - MNOs, banks, NGOs, fintechs, and global enterprises - MFS Africa's API hub makes connects over 320 million mobile wallets across 30+ countries in Africa.

From Farm to Table

Thu, 25 Nov 2021 16:25:08 +0200

Food prices are disproportionately expensive in African markets. In some countries, consumers spend 50% or more of their income on food. It's a logistics problem and a retail fragmentation problem, and it's also an agriculture and processing problem. So in this episode, we explore the agriculture and processing value chains on the continent.

[04:44] - Lack of processing capabilities is a problem in African markets. But processing capabilities are hampered by inconsistent supply from smallholder farmers, as we discuss with ReelFruit's Affiong Williams.
[08:33] - We speak with Releaf's Ikenna Nwezi about the company's interventions in the palm oil value chain in Nigeria.
[16:05] - On the importation and exportation of raw and processed foods, and the markets served by processors on the continent.
[22:03] - How do farms increase their efficiency? We talk precision agriculture with Revolute Systems' Jacobus Els.
[28:43] - A retrospective conversation with The Flip's Sayo Folawiyo and Justin Norman.

This season is sponsored by MFS Africa.

Building a Healthier Africa

Thu, 18 Nov 2021 14:41:30 +0200

How can Africans receive greater access to quality healthcare? That's the problem we'll attempt to explain in this episode, and it's a wicked problem.

In this episode, we go deep into the healthcare value chain from diagnostics to labs to clinics and pharmacies, to better understand how it all works and how those we speak to in this episode are working to get improved care to Africans across the continent.

[04:49] - Today, there is a greater trend towards reactive, not proactive medicine, due to high out-of-pocket spend for medical care, as 54gene's Dr. Jumi Popoola explains.
[07:01] - The high degree of out-of-pocket spending coupled with low incomes ultimately creates the problem of low accessibility to high-quality healthcare, about which we speak to Ilara Health's Emilian Popa.
[11:05] - Medical care starts with diagnostics. How do we get cheaper and more accessible diagnostics to the last mile? And why are diagnostics so important in the first place?
[16:39] - Also, how do we get more payers into the healthcare ecosystem to pay for diagnostics?
[21:39] - Fragmentation of pharmacies and healthcare facilities at the last mile is also a problem. We hear from Suleman Sule with Field Intelligence.
[25:46] - We speak to Zipline's Israel Bimpe. When it comes to high-value essential medicines, perhaps on-demand delivery is required to increase availability and reduce waste.
[32:47] - 54gene's ultimate mission is to ensure the treatments being used on the continent are the right treatments and, through their biobank, to participate in the research process to develop new drugs and treatments for Africa and beyond.
[36:45] - A retrospective conversation between The Flip's Justin Norman and Sayo Folawiyo.

This season is sponsored by MFS Africa.

Making Borders Matter Less - A Conversation with Dare Okoudjou

Dare Okoudjou, Justin Norman, Sayo Folawiyo — Thu, 11 Nov 2021 13:30:46 +0200

As MFS Africa announces its $100 million Series C, The Flip's Justin Norman and Sayo Folawiyo sit down for a conversation with MFS Africa's Founder and CEO, Dare Okoudjou.

[02:34]- First question, on MFS Africa's recent acquisition of Baxi, and their expansion into Nigeria.
[05:36] - Why Nigeria? And why now?
[09:15] - On MFS Africa's expansion capabilities.
[12:49] - Beyond remittances. - on trade clusters and markets.
[18:05] - How does MFS Africa think about collaboration in the ecosystem while keeping the discipline to focus strictly on a B2B service?
[22:26] - On sexiness and fundraising.
[29:51] - On valuations and fintech consolidation.
[35:39] - Having scaled across 30+ countries, what does Dare think about regulatory fragmentation? And what does he wish happens from a governmental point of view?

This season is sponsored by MFS Africa.

Problem Solving for Fragmented Retail

Thu, 04 Nov 2021 13:17:54 +0200

As we began our exploration into retail and the so-called B2B commerce platforms, we kept asking about the nature of last-mile retail. Why is it so fragmented? And can we expect retail consolidation?

In this episode, we explore why retail looks the way that it does in African markets, and how B2B commerce platforms are working to empower retailers in the context of the way in which last-mile retail works to meet the demands of their customers, the mass-market consumers across the continent.

These platforms aggregate demand at the fragmented last mile, to ensure that products not only get to consumers but get to consumers more efficiently, with the aim to ultimately reduce the costs of goods, which, as we talked about last episode, are disproportionately expensive in African markets.

[05:12] - Why is retail in Africa so fragmented? As Twiga Foods' Peter Njonjo explains, it's largely due to the rate of population growth in urban cities across the continent.
[07:42] - How are B2B commerce platforms attempting to provide solutions for retailers in the context of massive fragmentation? We go on a journey of discovery with ZUMI's William McCarren.
[14:29] - So what exactly do B2B commerce platforms do, and how does retailer aggregation work? Sokowatch's Daniel Yu explains.
[16:52] - And as a result, these platforms can offer embedded finance offerings to SMEs and retailers who may not have previously had access to credit.
[22:07] - On the back of demand aggregation, platforms like Twiga Foods and Sokowatch are both needing to invest further upstream at the supply level of the value chain, as well.
[31:30] - A retrospective conversation with The Flip's host, Justin Norman, and b-mic, Sayo Folawiyo.

This season is sponsored by MFS Africa.

Journey to the Last Mile

Thu, 28 Oct 2021 13:10:00 +0200

As we continue our season on value chains, in this episode, we explore logistics.

The cost of goods and food is disproportionately higher in Africa than anywhere else in the world, with consumers in some markets, spending 50% or more of their total income on food alone. A major reason for these high prices is logistics.

So how do we fix this? How do we improve the efficiency of logistics on the African continent, and ultimately drive down the cost of goods?

[04:20] - On the role of containerization and efficient ports, with Jetstream Africa's Miishe Addy.
[11:37] - After we get through the ports, our goods are loaded onto a truck. We hear from Omar Hagrass on how Trella is trying to improve long-haul efficiency in North Africa and the Middle East.
[15:26] - From the port, we move on to the wholesale distributor. As we discuss with Daniel Yu, Sokowatch is aggregating small retailers at the fragmented last-mile and offering same-day delivery of fast-moving consumer goods.
[22:37] - As the nature of retail evolves and more small merchants need logistics solutions, logistics-as-a-service providers like Sendbox are playing a role at the last-mile. We hear from its CEO, Emotu Balogun.
[26:41] - But amidst all of this tech and innovation - what about infrastructure? To what extent is the problem just poor ports and roads? The Flip's b-mic, Sayo Folawiyo, and its host, Justin Norman, call up infrastructure investor Dami Agbaje for some insight.
[32:42] - This episode's retrospective with Sayo and Justin.

This season is sponsored by MFS Africa.

Africa Stack

Mina Shahid, Abdul Hassan, Brendan Playford, Justin Norman, Mark Straub — Thu, 21 Oct 2021 11:36:19 +0200

This episode concludes our three-part fintech series this season. In the first two episodes, we tackled payments. In this episode, we explore the other layers of the financial services stack - namely, identity and data.

Africa Stack is a play on India Stack - India's pioneering platform of open APIs and digital infrastructure that underpins the country's rapid move towards a paperless, cashless, and digital future. But whereas India Stack was built in one market, with one currency and one regulator, and with significant government investment, how does Africa Stack get built across a fragmented continent?

[04:33] - What is India Stack, why is it important, and what does it mean for Africa Stack?
[07:20] - We explore one layer of the stack - identity - with Smile Identity's Mark Straub.
[08:51] - Identity is a distinct challenge in Africa due to the gaps left by governments. According to The Economist, in countries like Tanzania, Ethiopia or Malawi, for example, less than 20% of births are registered.
[12:50] - Another important part of identity is address verification - something that OkHi's Timbo Drayson is attempting to improve upon.
[19:25] - One reason why Africa Stack is important is because of the opportunities created by data layer and open banking startups, like Mono, as discussed with its CEO, Abdul Hassan.
[23:14] - Whereas Mono is tackling bank customers in bank-led Nigeria, Pngme is focused on USSD transaction data, the telco rails that power mobile money. We hear from Pngme's Brendan Playford.
[27:40] - Beyond data aggregation, there is a need for data empowerment, to create opportunities for real-time, customized credit, for example.
[30:25] - So how will Africa Stack come together across such a fragmented ecosystem?

This season is sponsored by MFS Africa.

Follow the Money, Part Two

Stone Atwine, Nika Naghavi, Justin Norman, Elizabeth Rossiello, Ham Serunjogi — Thu, 14 Oct 2021 08:00:00 +0200

In episode one of this season, we explored how money moves within borders in Africa. In this episode, we explore how money moves across them.

[01:27] - Africa is the most expensive region in the world to send money to, according to the World Bank's Remittance Prices Worldwide report.
[07:26] - Why are there such limited cross-border payment options within Africa?
[08:30] - And why is sending money across borders in Africa so expensive? AZA Finance's Elizabeth Rossiello tells the story of investment in infrastructure and liquidity, or lack thereof.
[13:39] - How do you create liquidity across markets and between curriencies?
[18:12] - How are fintechs providing better rates and leveraging technology to reduce the cost of cross-border payments?
[24:32] - On the chicken and egg game of infrastructure and payment volumes across borders. Ham Serunjogi, Chipper Cash's CEO, shares the companies outlook on making cross-border payments more accessible in Africa.

This season is sponsored by MFS Africa.

Follow the Money

Thu, 07 Oct 2021 13:05:31 +0200

We hear a lot, in the African tech ecosystem, that the competition is with cash. Virtually every country in the world is on some form of a journey to move from cash to cashless. Many African markets, however, are quite far on that journey. And to understand how to accelerate this trend on the continent, we first need to understand how money moves.

[04:55] - For most Africans, the mobile money experience starts with agent networks, like TeamApt's MoniePoint, in Nigeria.
[09:47] - Though increasingly, people are getting paid by employers directly into their mobile wallets. Bulk disbursement startups like Julaya, in Cote d'Ivoire, play a role here.
[13:24] - But how does money actually move, between accounts and banks? The movement of money is powered by national payments switches. In South Africa, its payments switch is BankservAfrica.
[20:06] - So now that we know how money moves, how are fintechs building greater utility into their mobile wallets, to compel users to keep money in them?
[25:56] - How should we think about the design and extensibility of mobile wallets, in the context of physical wallets?

This season is sponsored by MFS Africa.

Introducing The Flip Season Three

Thu, 30 Sep 2021 14:38:31 +0200

Introducing The Flip Season Three. This season is about value chains - we pop the hood across sectors and take an in-depth look at what's going on underneath.

Middlemen as a Service - A Retrospective with Sayo Folawiyo and Justin Norman

Justin Norman, Sayo Folawiyo — Thu, 18 Mar 2021 06:20:00 +0200

Each episode during our narrative episodes, The Flip's b-mic, Sayo Folawiyo, and founder, Justin Norman, sit down for a retrospective conversation on the topic explored in that episode. However, our current series of conversational episodes explored one theme across the series - digitizing analog and fragmented industries - we opted to have one retrospective conversation that reflects on the entirety of our 10 episode series.

In this episode, Sayo and Justin talk about people-centric tech startups, market segmentation, interoperability, specialization, and they may have even invested a new as-a-service category.

3:54 - After a full season of episodes exploring those digitizing analog and fragmented industries, what did we learn?
5:17 - People heavy, high-touch businesses are a feature, especially in African markets.
10:10 - On segmenting the informal sector.
11:53 - A discussion on interoperability and the role of the middlemen.
15:35 - Introducing Middlemen as a Service.
16:04 - On specialization.

This episode is part of our conversational series sponsored by MFS Africa. MFS Africa’s competition is with cash, and throughout this series, we’ll feature other startups and entrepreneurs who are digitizing, better organizing, and aggregating analog and fragmented industries.

Follow The Flip on social media @theflipafrica.

Accessible and Affordable EdTech with Eneza Education's Wambura Kimunyu

Justin Norman, Wambura Kimunyu, Anne-Marie Chidzero — Thu, 11 Mar 2021 07:00:00 +0200

In this episode, we talk edtech with Wambura Kimunyu, the Group CEO of Eneza Education.

Throughout the series of episodes, we’re exploring the entrepreneurs in start-ups digitizing informal and fragmented industries on the continent. And for Eneza Education to remain affordable and accessible, it means distributing text-based content to basic mobile phones via SMS, and acquiring customers via radio advertising. We talk to Wambura about building a product for low-income students - 70% of whom live in rural areas, the content development and distribution process, balancing available technologies with the needs of their customers, how to price for low-income consumers, and more.

4:59 - First question, who are the customers that Eneza Education is serving?
6:08 - A deep dive into Eneza Education's products - the SMS-based Shipavu291 and Ask-A-Teacher.
12:20 - On the content development process and launching in a new country.
14:29 - On expansion - what role do development agencies and foundations play here?
16:22 - Eneza Education's pricing strategy.
20:46 - How is the company measuring impact, and what of impact are they creating?
22:26 - How does Eneza Education build their product with restraint? Why don't they have a mobile app?

This episode is part of our conversational series sponsored by MFS Africa. MFS Africa's competition is with cash, and throughout this series, we'll feature other startups and entrepreneurs who are digitizing, better organizing, and aggregating analog and fragmented industries.

Follow The Flip on social media @theflipafrica.

Mass-Market Media with StarNews Mobile's Guy Kamgaing

Guy Kamgaing, Adia Sowho, Justin Norman — Thu, 04 Mar 2021 07:05:00 +0200

In this episode, we explore entertainment for mass-market consumers in Africa with Guy Kamgaing, the Founder and CEO of StarNews Mobile.

Throughout the series of episodes, we're exploring the entrepreneurs in start-ups digitizing informal and fragmented industries on the continent. And in the media space, that means building a product fit for the realities of mass-market consumers. In a world of abundant free content on YouTube, Instagram, Snapchat, and other "data guzzling" platforms, StarNews is building a business selling a la carte microcontent bundled with telco data, and they're selling it to millions of African consumers, while simultaneously helping creators make money off of their content, as well.

04:05 - First question, what is StarNews' background story?
06:52 - A deeper dive into the product, from both the content development and distribution perspectives.
10:30 - Why would a consumer pay for content when so much free content is readily available elsewhere?
15:47 - A discussion on StarNews' growth, and expansion from Côte d'Ivoire, across Francophone African countries, to South Africa.
18:05 - On partnering with telcos.
20:29 - How are the streaming wars between Netflix and Disney influencing strategy, and why is StarNews investing in content development?

Follow The Flip on social media @theflipafrica.

The Case for Crypto with Bundle's Yele Bademosi

Yele Bademosi, Justin Norman, Benjamin Fernandes — Thu, 25 Feb 2021 07:05:00 +0200

In this episode, we talk about cryptocurrency with the Co-Founder and CEO of Bundle, and the Founding Partner of Microtraction, Yele Bademosi. Beyond trading and price volatility, what is it about crypto that excites Yele and so many others on the continent?

Throughout the series of episodes, we're exploring the entrepreneurs in start-ups digitizing informal and fragmented industries on the continent. And despite the technological underpinnings of cryptocurrency as a whole, many of the buying and selling processes and use cases of crypto today are still quite informal and fragmented. In this episode, we hear from Yele about the work Bundle is doing to build products and use cases that make crypto more accessible, affordable and help bring it into the mainstream.

For those less familiar with crypto terminology, we have also published a crypto glossary to define many of the terms used in this episode. Check it out here: https://theflip.africa/crypto-glossary/

4:21 - First question, on consumer education in largely cash-based economies.
10:36 - The macro dynamics - such as devaluation of the Nigerian Naira - that help make the case for crypto adoption.
14:41 - Bundle's origin story and the goals for the business.
20:22 - An exploration of use cases for crypto beyond trading and speculation.
26:47 - A conversation on DeFi, or decentralized finance.
32:42 - On a grand scale, what kind of impact can crypto - and Bundle - have in Africa?

Follow The Flip on social media @theflipafrica.

Digitizing Community Banking with Kwara's Cynthia Wandia

Cynthia Wandia, Maria Nantayi, Justin Norman — Thu, 18 Feb 2021 07:05:00 +0200

In this episode, we talk about savings and credit cooperative societies, or SACCOs, and the outsize role these member-owned community banks play in African and emerging markets. While millions of Africans belong to SACCOs, it's an industry that Kwara's Cynthia Wandia calls "as analog as it gets". Kwara is a Kenyan startup building software to digitize SACCOs, and in this episode, we talk to Cynthia about the role SACCOs play in these markets, the product and design principles employed to ensure proper utilization of the platform, Kwara's impact for members, the company's origin story, and more.

4:23 - First question, what are SACCOs, and why are these types of member-owned community institutions so prevalent in markets like Kenya?
10:20 - An introduction to Kwara and its products.
16:54 - What product and design considerations went into building Kwara to ensure high utilization of the platform?
21:06 - On Kwara's SACCO onboarding processes.
27:42 - We explore Cynthia's background and Kwara's origin story.
36:34 - Looking ahead, how does Kwara look at product and geographic expansion, and the opportunity to be an embedded finance platform?

Follow The Flip on social media @theflipafrica.

Fintech for Cash-First Markets with Nomanini's Vahid Monadjem

Vahid Monadjem, Justin Norman, Chris Williamson — Thu, 11 Feb 2021 07:05:00 +0200

In this episode, we continue our exploration of the entrepreneurs digitizing informal and analog markets, with Nomanini's Vahid Monadjem. Nomanini is a fintech platform for informal retail merchants in cash-heavy economies, and Vahid, the company's Founder and CEO, believes the best "way to move beyond cash is for us to be really interoperable with it." In this episode, we talk about specialization and interoperability, B2B partnerships, lessons from the last-mile, and much more.

3:41 - First question, what is the market environment in which Nomanini is operating?
7:42 - We dive deep into Nomanini's products.
15:25 - A discussion on cash and interoperability.
23:45 - On Nomanini's B2B partnerships and how to work with corporates.
30:12 - What's Nomanini's origin story, and what lessons have they learned from their ten-year journey?
36:05 - What does the future of fintech and informal retail in Africa look like?

Follow The Flip on social media @theflipafrica.

Technology for Informal Trade with MarketForce 360's Tesh Mbaabu

Justin Norman, Josh Sandler, Tesh Mbaabu — Thu, 04 Feb 2021 07:00:00 +0200

In this episode, we open the black box of last-mile retail distribution with MarketForce 360's Tesh Mbaabu. 90 percent of trade in Africa is informal, and MarketForce's software-as-a-service platform to better manage their field sales agents and distribution. We'll talk about product, the considerations in building products you use at the last mile and the needs of the multinational FMCG companies and financial service providers at the other end of the value chain. We talk about his recent experience participating in Y Combinator's accelerator program, what other companies he hopes to see built in the retail and logistics space, and more.

4:00 - First question, what problems do multinational FMCG companies have with regards to distributing products in African markets?
5:31 - We dive into MarketForce 360's product.
13:06 - Product and design lessons from the last-mile.
14:41 - On consumer insights from the last-mile.
16:17- On competition, strategy, and MarketForce's asset-light approach to servicing distributors and manufacturers.
21:12 - We discuss Tesh's recent experience participating in Y Combinator's accelerator.
23:40 - YC has Request for Startups; what is MarketForce's Request for Startups?

Follow The Flip on social media @theflipafrica.

Building a Savings Culture with PiggyVest's Odunayo Eweniyi

Odunayo Eweniyi, Justin Norman, Abdul Hassan — Thu, 28 Jan 2021 07:05:00 +0200

In this episode, we explore digital savings with PiggyVest's Odunayo Eweniyi. PiggyVest's competition is the wooden box that Nigerians were using to save cash. We'll talk about how the company designed the product to compel mass-market consumers to save digitally; how their use of social media and word of mouth built trust and engendered a savings culture, how Odun think about new products, like crypto and insurance, as well as geographic expansion, and more.

4:19 - First question, what is PiggyVest's core competency, and how has the founders' past experiences helped them build the product and the company?
8:27 - We discuss key features of the savings platform, like a 90-day savings period.
11:37 - How did PiggyVest build trust amongst its users?
15:30 - On product and geographic expansion.
24:08 - Odun shares her thoughts on competition and the un-bundling (and re-bundling) of financial services by the fintech ecosystem.

Follow The Flip on social media @theflipafrica.

Insurance-as-a-Service with Lami's Jihan Abass

Jihan Abass, Jeremy Leach, Justin Norman — Thu, 21 Jan 2021 07:00:00 +0200

In this episode, we speak to Jihan Abass, the Founder and CEO of Lami, an insurance-as-a-service startup based in Nairobi, Kenya. Lami's platform enables insurers, banks, and other partners to offer digital and flexible insurance to African consumers.

4:12 – First question: formal insurance penetration in Africa is 3%. What's the problem and how is Lami trying to solve it?
6:45 – What does flexible, digital, B2B2C insurance actually look like in practice?
9:32 - Lami's origin story.
10:48 - A discussion about Griffin Motor Insurance, Lami's B2C motor insurance app used to test and showcase their product to prospective partners and customers.
15:10 - How can - and will - embedded, digital insurance increase insurance penetration on the continent?

Follow The Flip on social media @theflipafrica.

Digitizing Healthcare with Helium Health's Goke Olubusi

Goke Olubusi, Rachel Coleman, Justin Norman — Thu, 14 Jan 2021 07:05:00 +0200

Our exploration of the entrepreneurs and startups digitizing analog and fragmented industries takes us to Nigeria, for a conversation with Helium Health's Co-founder and CEO Goke Olubusi. Helium's electronic medical records are providing the digital infrastructure for healthcare sectors across Africa, enabling a variety of stakeholders to make data-driven decisions.

4:26 - First question: what does the state of healthcare look like, and how is Helium Health solving the industry's problems?
9:16 - Helium's origin story.
11:48 - On the big picture solutions that are required to have the type of impact in healthcare the continent needs.
13:12 - A discussion on the benefits and opportunity of an open and operable approach.
15:46 - Helium's geographic and product expansion strategies.
19:42 - The impact of improving and opportunity to improve the efficiency of healthcare spending in Africa.

Inside the Stripe Acquisition of Paystack with Shola Akinlade & Matt Henderson

Matt Henderson, Shola Akinlade, Sayo Folawiyo, Justin Norman — Thu, 03 Dec 2020 07:00:00 +0200

On October 15, 2020, Paystack and Stripe announced the acquisition of the former by the latter, in a deal reported to be worth over $200 million. This marks Stripe's largest acquisition to date and is an incredibly meaningful exit for the African tech ecosystem. To unpack the deal, we spoke to Shola Akinlade, Paystack's Co-founder and CEO, and Matt Henderson, Stripe's Business Lead for Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.

3:43 - We start our story of the Stripe acquisition of Paystack in the Winter of 2016. Paystack becomes the first Nigerian startup to participate in Y Combinator, where Shola is introduced to Stripe Co-founder and CEO Patrick Collison. Stripe leads Paystack's Series A.
6:02 - As both companies - and their relationship with each other - grew, the idea of an acquisition arose naturally.
8:10 - Why is Stripe interested in Paystack, and Africa as a region?
10:38 - What does the future for Paystack look like now that it has joined Stripe?
13:40 - We explore the growth opportunity for Paystack's merchants, as it expands its geographic coverage.
15:55 - On Paystack's customer intimacy and product roadmap.
19:44 - As always, a reflective conversation between Justin Norman and Sayo Folawiyo on this episode’s topic.

For more episodes, visit us at https://theflip.africa or follow us on twitter @theflipafrica.

Smart People Should Build Things - On Recruiting and the Global Competition for Top Talent

Thu, 01 Oct 2020 06:05:00 +0200

The very nature of a high-growth startup means that the company is always growing and hiring at a rapid rate. And for African startups, in particular, the talent question is even more acute, given the general challenges of sourcing for select roles, as well as the difficulty in competing for talent with other startups, multinationals, and companies elsewhere in the world. In this episode, we unpack the talent and recruiting situation for venture-backed startups and growth-stage companies - how do we source for newer types of roles, like product and growth? Do we hire for aptitude and train up? Do we go to where there is more talent? How does remote work - particularly during COVID-19 - play a role here?

2:50 - We discuss the current recruiting landscape with Toun Tunde-Anjous, Founder of The People Practice.
4:38 - Charles Sekwalor, CEO of Movemeback, shares his views on the talent question, and the opportunities with startups and growth-stage companies on the continent.
8:17 - We explore startup recruitment strategy with Ijeoma Oyeyinka, Helium Health's Head of HR.
10:26 - Many startups, including Helium Health, use outside recruiters, as well. Toun's The People Practice is one such firm.
11:20 - We har from Ijeoma & Mansi Babyloni, Flutterwave's Global Head of People Strategy on the hiring competition, and the pitches they make to mission-driven talent.
15:12 - Mansi & Toun on compensation and their experiences with African startups offering equity packages.
17:59 - On remote working dynamics and the opportunity to tap into a wider talent pool, particularly due to COVID-19.
20:46 - A discussion on training & development of talent, and in particular less experienced talent, on the continent.
24:23 - We hear from Aaron Fu, on the Venture for Africa fellowship program, and their endeavor to de-risk an exploration into the African tech and startup ecosystem.
28:13 - As always, a reflective conversation between Justin Norman and Sayo Folawiyo on this episode's topic.

Much Ado About the Media

Thu, 24 Sep 2020 06:05:12 +0200

In this episode, we explore and unpack the relationship between the tech ecosystem and the media. We'll seek answers to questions such as - what roles do media publications play in the ecosystem? How does this differ between international and local publications? What are the key considerations for the media in doing this work, particularly from a talent and business model perspective? What about companies creating their own content - what is their motivation and what can be learned? And, why is there seemingly a contentious relationship between African tech and the media?

2:27 - We talk public relations utility and strategy, with Wimbart's Jessica Hope.
6:47 - What role does international tech media play in the ecosystem? We hear from TechCrunch contributing writer Jake Bright.
12:05 - A discussion with Tomiwa Aladekomo, of Big Cabal Media, the parent company to TechCabal, on the publications' objectives and challenges.
17:03 - We explore how one publication, Stears Business, is tackling information scarcity, talent, and business model challenges in Nigeria, with Preston Ideh.
23:05 - We speak with Paystack's Emmanuel Quartey on the company's editorial approach and hiring content to solve a problem.
28:23 - Is there a contentious relationship between African tech and the media? Are those in the ecosystem playing their part in sharing with requisite openness and transparency?
30:41 - A retrospective conversation between Sayo Folawiyo, Justin Norman, and this episode's co-producer Osarumen Osamuyi, on the environmental challenges of building sustainable media businesses and meeting the expectations of the tech ecosystem.

Connecting the Dots - Japanese Corporates and African Tech

Ryosuke Yamawaki, Justin Norman, Satoshi Shinada, Sayo Folawiyo, Nick Quintong — Thu, 17 Sep 2020 06:05:22 +0200

This season we've talked about the relationship between African tech and other emerging markets across the Global South, as well as with China. In this episode, we talk about the ecosystem's relationship Japan - and in particular, the interest Japanese investors and corporates have in innovations from the continent.

1:33 - Satoshi Shinada and Rio Yamawaki on the macro situation in Japan, and why Japanese investors are interested in African tech. Satoshi and Rio are GPs at Kepple Africa Ventures, one of the most active VCs on the continent.
5:58 - The primary reason why Japanese corporates are interested in investing on the continent is to form strategic partnerships and bring African innovation back with them.
9:43 - We explore a case study - the investment in Kenyan startup PayGo Energy by Saisan, a Japanese multinational gas company. We hear from PayGo's Co-founder and CEO Nick Quintong.
14:48 - A reflective conversation between Sayo Folawiyo and Justin Norman, on the value of Kepple, not only in connecting the dots, but in seeing and knowing which dots to connect between Japan and the continent, and on the opportunity for technology export.

Telcos, PalmPay, and the Future of Mobile Financial Services

Thu, 10 Sep 2020 06:05:20 +0200

In this episode, we explore the evolution of mobile financial services and the opportunity to deepen financial inclusion in African markets. This opportunity exists for mobile network operators, as well fintechs like PalmPay, backed by hardware manufacturer Transsion, whose smartphone brands - Tecno, Itel, and Infinix - account for over 50% of smartphone devices on the continent.

1:55 - We explore the evolution from USSD-led Mobile Money 1.0 to smartphone-led Mobile Money 2.0, with Hover's Wiza Jalakasi.
5:11 - Chris Williamson, the Head of M-Pesa at Vodacom Group, describes the future of M-Pesa and mobile financial services, and the role M-Pesa wishes to play to broaden the use cases and lay the rails for others in the ecosystem to build on top of.
10:27 - We also hear from Ramatoulaye Adama Diallo, the CEO of Orange Money Senegal, on Orange's approach to increasing the utilization of mobile financial services, and their role in the development of the tech ecosystem.
14:24 - While telcos have an outsize advantage from a distribution and customer perspective, so too does Transsion. We speak to PalmPay's Sofia Zab on how the fintech is leveraging their strategic investment from Transsion to integrate financial services into the hardware, and on the work they are doing to build out the digital use cases for its users.
20:16 - Where are there opportunities for startups to partner with MNOs or manufacturers, and how do they go about developing said partnerships? We hear from two emerging market fintech veterans - Adia Sowho and Hayden Simmons.
26:05 - As always, a reflective discussion between Sayo Folawiyo and Justin Norman - this week, on the differences between and opportunities for telco-led versus hardware-led mobile financial services.

Building for Purpose - China-Africa Tech

Sofia Zab, Stephen Deng, Justin Norman, Laura li, Sayo Folawiyo, Vincent Li — Thu, 03 Sep 2020 06:05:10 +0200

This week, we explore a hypothesis - that the lessons and models from Chinese tech companies have merit in African markets, given certain similarities between China’s development and the current conditions on the continent.

2:06 - DFS Lab's Stephen Deng on the experience of Chinese entrepreneurs and investors, and the lessons from leapfrogs in China that may have merit in Africa.
5:37 - We hear from Laura Li, VP of Investments of Future Hub, an early-stage investor and accelerator backed by Transsion, the number one cell phone manufacturer on the continenet, and parent company to Tecno, Itel and Infinix.
7:43 - A discussion with Vincent Li, the CEO of Future Hub, and Laura on the opportunities they see on the continent, in ecommerce, logistics, social media, and more.
14:50 - Another Transsion-backed company, PalmPay, is also leveraging Transsion's distribution and insights from China to grow in Nigeria and beyond. We hear from Sofia Zab, PalmPay's Global Head of Commercial & Marketing.
20:27 - As always, a reflective conversation between Justin Norman and Sayo Folawiyo, on social commerce and superapps.
24:37 - Part two with Justin and Sayo, on mobile money-enabled business models.

A Fintech Exit - Inside the MFS Africa Acquisition of Beyonic

Rachel Balsham, Dare Okoudjou, Luke Kyohere, Carina Rumberger, Justin Norman — Thu, 27 Aug 2020 06:05:01 +0200

Last episode, we went on a hypothetical startup journey from idea to exit. In this episode, we go on a real one.

In June of 2020, MFS Africa announced the acquisition of Beyonic. Together, the combined company of 95 employees now enables mobile money interoperability between markets and mobile network operators, and offers a suite of tools for SMEs, in 30-plus African markets. We go inside the acquisition - how it came together, why it makes sense, and what it means - both for the two companies and their stakeholders and for the ecosystem as a whole.

2:27 - Introducing some of the main players in the deal - Dare Okoudjou, the Founder & CEO of MFS Africa, Luke Kyohere, Founder of Beyonic, Carina Rumberger, CEO of Beyonic and Rachel Balsham, Deputy CEO of MFS Africa.
3:43 - We go back to 2009, when Dare left MTN to start MFS Africa. What was it like running the business in those early days building the foundation and infrastructure for mobile money usage across the continent?
7:55 - Luke takes us back to the beginning of Beyonic, where he saw an opportunity to build out tools for SMEs using mobile money.
11:22 - In 2018, after a sizeable fundraise, MFS Africa set out to scale. Two of their strategies included a) exploring tools for SMEs, and b) making minority investments in other complementary fintech startups across the continent. As these two strategies converged, Dare and Luke re-connected to talk fundraise.
16:11 - The discussions minority investment quickly became a majority investment and then a full acquisition. Dare, Rachel, Luke and Carina recount their respective thoughts on strategy, and how and why a full acquisition became the deal they pursued together.
19:39 - We get into the weeds a bit on tactics - what was the sell-in process like to each respective company's employees, shareholders and customers?
26:09 - On integration - of the teams and of the products.
30:07 - What does this deal - fintech consolidation, an African fintech acquiring another African fintech - mean not only for the newly combined company but for the African tech ecosystem as a whole?

From Idea to Exit - A Startup Fundraising Journey

Thu, 20 Aug 2020 06:05:05 +0200

This episode, we go on a hypothetical startup fundraising journey, from idea to exit.

2:04 - At the earliest stage, angel and venture investing is quite subjective, says Zachariah George, angel investor and Managing Director of LaunchAfrica.
3:46 - Because of the subjectivity, metrics and valuations don't matter as much at this stage. We hear from Chidinma Iwueke, Partner at pre-seed fund Microtraction, on their standard deal terms.
4:56 - A discussion with Andreata Muforo on how TLcom Capital approaches seed and Series A stage valuations.
8:56 - We hear from Cikü Mugambi of the IFC's Disruptive Technologies and Venture Capital team, how they leverage comparables of other emerging market startups in their portfolio to value prospective investments in Africa.
11:12 - Andreata and Cikü share their views on the exit paths for their portfolio companies.
13:17 - After venture capital comes private equity, and a discussion with Helios Investment Partners' Fope Adelowo.
19:37 - We hear from Victor Basta on what mergers and acquisition opportunities for tech-enabled companies, and discuss how founders and CEOs need to prepare for an exit.
27:08 - As always, a reflective conversation between Justin Norman and Sayo Folawiyo.

Finding Fit - Opportunities in the Global South

Thu, 13 Aug 2020 06:05:36 +0200

We dedicate this episode to Fahim Saleh, the Founder and CEO of Gokada, who was killed in New York City on July 13th. Our heartfelt condolences go out to his family and the entire Gokada team.

This year, Nigerian fintech companies Paga and Migo are expanding to Latin America, to Mexico and Brazil, respectively. Another Nigerian startup, Gokada, was launched by an entrepreneur who built a successful ride-hailing company in Bangladesh, where there was a similar set of market conditions. In this episode, we explore the similarities - and the opportunities - between emerging markets across the Global South.

3:57 - Why is Paga expanding to Mexico? And why is Migo expanding to Brazil? We hear from Paga's CEO Tayo Oviosu, and Migo's former VP of Growth, Adia Sowho.
7:42 - Fahim Saleh launched Gokada after successfully founding a ride-hailing company in Bangladesh. What was it about Nigeria, and his experience in Bangladesh, that compelled him to move to Nigeria to build Gokada?
12:39 - Investors like Cikü Mugambi with IFC's venture capital team, in evaluating deals are increasingly looking to markets in Latin America and South Asia for comparables and insights.
14:32 - Sayo Folawiyo and Justin Norman sit down to reflect on this topic, and discuss the notion of market size and under penetration of financial services as the core driver of opportunity for startups in Africa, Latin America and South Asia alike.

Global Ambition - Lessons from Tech Expansion

Thu, 06 Aug 2020 06:00:06 +0200

We've had prior discussions on Africa's market size (S1E5) and on Africa-focused investors' pursuit of scale (S1E7). Both topics ultimately lead to the same place for startups: geographic expansion. What are the considerations and implications?

2:05 - Keith Davies, former CFO of Zoona, shares cautions startups to be careful because expansion introduces a lot of the complexity for the business.
4:35 - Operational considerations of expansion, with Wiza Jalakasi, Head of Business Development at Hover Developer Services.
5:31 - It's crucial to pitch to investors an expansion and growth strategy that you can actually execute on, says Paga Group CEO Tayo Oviosu.
9:29 - A discussion with M&A advisory firm Magister Advisor's Victor Basta, on expansion, fundraising and exits.
13:52 - What does pan-African really mean? with The Subtext's Osarumen Osamuyi.
15:29 - And if there are few truly pan-African startups, perhaps there are better markets to expand to outside of Africa.
18:07 - A reflective conversation on this topic between Justin Norman and The Flip's b-mic and Executive Producer, Sayo Folawiyo.

Co-Building The Future - High-Touch Venture Investing

Thu, 30 Jul 2020 06:10:15 +0200

In this episode, we explore high-touch venture investing models - in particular, venture development and talent investing, as well as peer-selected investment.

2:16 - an introduction to accelerator programs and their objectives, with Catalyst Fund's Aaron Fu.
3:47 - a discussion with Adedana Ashebir on Village Capital's peer-selected investment model.
6:16 - Founders Factory Africa's Lwazi Wali and Sam Sturm on venture building and the merits of a human capital intensive investment model.
10:20 - GreenTec Capital Partners takes their venture building model one step further. We hear from Erick Yong on GreenTec's Results for Equity model.
16:07 - Then, Catalyst Fund takes their venture building model yet another step further. As Maelis Carraro explains, their program offers venture building as a grant and does not take any equity in the startups in their portfolio.
22:55 - While the aforementioned programs support existing startups, Antler's startup generator investment model brings individuals into a cohort to co-found startups with other participants in the program. We hear from Selam Kebede on the merits of this model for African markets.
27:59 - The Flip's founder, Justin Norman and executive producer, Sayo Folawiyo, discuss their takeaways episode, and Sayo shares his experience, from a founder's perspective, as a participant in startup programs.

Introducing The Flip Season Two

Thu, 23 Jul 2020 06:10:14 +0200

Introducing The Flip Season Two - the podcast exploring contextually relevant insights from entrepreneurs changing the status quo in Africa. This season, we explore venture building, geographic expansion, valuations and exits, mobile money, emerging markets, China, and much more.

Produced and hosted by Justin Norman. Sayo Folawiyo is the executive producer and b-mic.

https://www.theflip.africa

Crisis-Induced Collaboration

Thu, 21 May 2020 06:00:12 +0200

They say never waste a good crisis. And while COVID-19 has had a horrible, crippling effect on individuals and economies alike, if there's one positive to the pandemic, perhaps it's that it's compelling and facilitating partnerships to serve the greater good; to bring people together to solve problems that have already existed, but that now have been brought even further to the fore. In this episode, we talk to entrepreneurs who have solved and are solving problems through crisis-induced collaboration.

1:52 - We take a look back at a prior crisis-induced collaboration with Ory Okolloh, a Co-founder of Ushahidi, a digital and data mapping platform built in response to post-election violence in Kenya in 2008.
6:23 - Today, the Kenyan tech ecosystem is collaborating on a COVID-19-induced initiative, Safe Hands Kenya. We hear from Peter Njonjo, Co-founder and CEO of Twiga Foods, which is repurposing its existing technology and logistics infrastructure to get essential good in the hands of at-risk Kenyans.
9:06 - Safe Hands Kenya is a community-wide collaboration of both partners and competitors. Sokowatch Kenya CEO Angela Nzioki shares her perspective on the partnership approach, and both Angela and Peter discuss the impact for their respective businesses.
13:01 - Is this period an opportunity to take things even one step further, asks Ory Okolloh.
14:42 - My b-mic, Sayo Folawiyo, and I share our thoughts on this episode and the insights from Ory, Peter and Angela.

Building Through Crises

Thu, 30 Apr 2020 06:00:18 +0200

As we continue to weather the unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic, and its second order effects on the economy, hat lessons can we learn from those who have lived, survived or even thrived through somewhat similar circumstances in the past? In this episode, we hear stories from three entrepreneurs whose past experiences may be useful for the entrepreneurs of today.

2:07 - 'Tokunboh Ishmael, Co-founder and Managing Partner of Alitheia Capital, shares her experience attempting to fundraise during the 2008 Global Financial Crisis. Her firm wound up pivoting to a partnership-centric approach - a strategy which has endured for the past 13 years.
8:38 - We hear Appfrica's origin story from its founder, Jon Gosier. Through Tech for Good and other client-based work around the continent, Jon was able to bootstrap Appfrica and ultimately make investments out of the company's balance sheet.
14:25 - Much like Jon funded his business and investment activity through cashflow, Craig McLeod, the CEO of BoxCommerce, has bootstrapped his business through service-based revenue. Craig shares how he's built his business to service his clients, while leveraging that revenue to build their main business. The Business Insider article referenced is here: https://www.businessinsider.com/how-long-companies-can-survive-without-bringing-in-money-2020-3?IR=T
17:34 - We hear again from 'Tokunboh Ishmael on the resiliency and diversification of one of her firm's portfolio companies, MAX.NG, and the advice she is presently giving her entrepreneurs.
20:38 - My b-mic, Sayo Folawiyo, and I discuss this episode, and the way in which Sayo is approaching the situation caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Accessible Insurance for All - A Conversation with MicroEnsure's Richard Leftley

Richard Leftley — Thu, 19 Mar 2020 06:00:17 +0200

MicroEnsure’s origins date back in 2002 when its founder, Richard Leftley, started asking a simple question of traditional insurance companies – why is it that insurers only create products and services for the wealthy? He never got a good answer. Richard had seen the data on the impact that natural disasters had on human lives in emerging markets – there was clearly a mismatch between risk and access to insurance.

Years later, as mobile penetration in these markets increased, MicroEnsure stopped asking its clients three standard questions during the signup process (name, age, and next of kin) – and they signed up 20 million customers in 140 days! They now serve over 60 million customers, 80% of whom had never had insurance prior to MicroEnsure.

2:47 – On MicroEnsure’s distribution model.
5:48 – How can MicroEnsure not ask any questions of their customers? It comes down to the difference in traditional insurance products versus microinsurance.
7:23 – How MicroEnsure leverages its distribution partners to achieve requisite scale.
8:17 – Why MicroEnsure went straight to the partnership model as opposed to going direct to the consumer.
10:34 – How MicroEnsure leverages their partners’ brands and data to sell their products.
13:13 – Richard and Justin discuss misconceptions around customer education and the importance of very simple products.
14:54 – The changes to MicroEnsure’s business model and how they fit into the insurance value chain.
17:11 – Richard background and the origin story of MicroEnsure.
19:52 – MicroEnsure’s business in Africa and key considerations for expansion.
23:39 – Market size as a consideration and stories of their business in Malawi and Nigeria.
25:00 – The story of MicroEnsure moving from a non-profit, funded by a large grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates foundation to a for-profit, venture-backed company.
27:25 – After 20 years as an entrepreneur, Richard shares his general advice for entrepreneurs.

A Conversation with Rebecca Enonchong

Rebecca Enonchong, Justin Norman — Fri, 21 Feb 2020 06:00:20 +0200

Rebecca Enonchong (@africatechie) is widely known for her evangelism of the African tech ecosystem. But she's much more than merely an evangelist. Rebecca started the US-based enterprise software company in 1999, growing it into a global business, and along the way has co-founded the Africa Business Angels Network, AfriLabs, I/O Spaces, ActivSpaces and more.

I was so fortunate to be paid a visit by Rebecca in Johannesburg, where we sat down for a conversation on how to best help entrepreneurs in the ecosystem, her views on doing business in Francophone Africa, her journey as an entrepreneur as the founder and CEO of AppsTech, and about how one particular telecom owes them a lot of money and caused her to miss out on a multi-million dollar exit opportunity.

Context Matters - What Alternative Financing Models are Appropriate for This Ecosystem?

Thu, 30 Jan 2020 06:39:55 +0200

To solve problems on the continent, entrepreneurs are building sustainable, impact-driven, infrastructure-building, tech-enabled, for-profit companies - how should these companies be funded?

In this episode - our third and final episode of our three-part series on venture investing in Africa, and the final episode of Season One, as well, we take a first principles approach to fundraising in Africa, and dive deeper into the opportunities for entrepreneurs to leverage different types of capital and funders to achieve their business' objectives.

1:45- We define Venture Capital in the Silicon Valley sense, from Stratechery's What Is a Tech Company?
2:48 - A discussion with LifeBank's Temie Giwa-Tubosun, on building a solution in the healthcare space - as a proxy for our exploration into impact-driven, for-profit startups in Africa
6:24 - A discussion with MDaaS Global's Genevieve Barnard Oni and Oluwasoga Oni on building tech-enabled, brick and mortar diagnostic centers in Nigeria, and being told by one investor that they weren't "tech enough"
10:31 - If the businesses being build to solve problems across Africa are not "tech enough", and if venture capitalists fund tech companies, then what fundraising models should we use? We hear from LaunchLab's Josh Romisher on the variety of investment vehicles used to fund off-grid solar home system ventures.
14:01 - Exploring innovative finance models with the Bertha Centre for Social Innovation and Entrepreneurship's Tine Fisker Henriksen.
18:41 - If we're re-thinking investment models, should we also be re-thinking the very nature of finance for emerging markets? With Founders Factory's Lwazi Wali.
22:12 - How might we imagine new, yet-to-be -determined models for Africa? Perhaps with the help of a history lesson from Alex Lazarow, global venture capitalist and author of Out-Innovate: How Global Entrepreneurs - from Delhi to Detroit - Are Rewriting the Rules of Silicon Valley.
25:17 - As always, Sayo and I share our thoughts.

In Pursuit of Scale - The Strategies of Africa-Focused Venture Investors

Thu, 16 Jan 2020 06:00:13 +0200

Venture Capitalists, generally speaking, are looking to fund high-growth ventures that have the potential to scale and achieve virtually infinite returns. But achieving that scale is hard, even more so in Africa, where there are market size questions, fragmented markets, and regulatory considerations. As a result, venture investors are looking for a specific type of founder and entrepreneur - one who has demonstrated the potential to pull it off and achieve the growth and scale investors are seeking.

In the African early-stage ecosystem, with its funding scarcity, limited track record, talent shortage, and expansion challenges, how do venture investors reconcile their quest for funding high-growth ventures in this environment?

2:24 - defining venture capital, courtesy of Stratechery's Ben Thompson and his blog post What is a Tech Company: https://stratechery.com/2019/what-is-a-tech-company/
3:59 - VCs are looking for scale, and talent capable of achieving the desired scale, with Microtraction's Chidinma Iwueke & Dayo Koleowo + TLCom Capital's Ido Sum
8:14 - a discussion on scarce deal flow and a lack of investable startups, with Dayo & Digest Africa's Peter Kisadha
10:46 - 4Di Capital's Justin Stanford + Ido talk about the need to balance their portfolios to account for the realities of the African market...
11:46 - ...but a balanced portfolio doesn't mean lesser return expectations
13:35 - how venture builders like Founders Factory Africa & Lwazi Wali are supporting entrepreneurs through their journey to scale
16:14 - GreenTec Capital Partner & Maxime Bayen on their results for equity initiative
17:58 - Lwazi + Startupbootcamp Africa's Zachariah George & global venture capitalist Alex Lazarow on achieving incentive alignment through initiatives like corporate VC and evergreen funds
23:32 - a discussion with Justin & Sayo on venture investing in Africa

What Do Entrepreneurs Consider When Seeking Venture Capital?

Thu, 02 Jan 2020 06:00:03 +0200

We talk so often of venture capital that it's more or less assumed that raising VC funding is an inextricable part of the entrepreneur's journey. But should it be? What are the purposes for taking in VC money, and what are the considerations?

1:24 - Keith Davies, ex-CFO and Partner at Zoona on the implications of taking VC money
3:19 - Integrateme Founder Luke Dominique Warner on their strategic decision to not do a traditional round of VC fundraising
5:24 - EAVCA's Eva Warigia and VC4A's Ben White on attracting local businesses leaders and high net worth individuals to participate in early-stage investment as strategic investors, and connecting foreign investors with different skillsets to local opportunities
8:27 - Startups experience raising money for a strategic and specific purpose, with Farmcrowdy Founder Onyeka Akumah, as well as Keith and Luke
10:31 - Riby Founder & CEO Abolore Salami + Keith on strategically and selectively soliciting investors
12:47 - Keith, Onyeka and Yoco's Marcello Schermer on considerations around timelines of raising money, from both foreign and local investors
15:11 - Justin and Sayo breakdown the conversation around seeking VC funding, including Sayo's experience fundraising locally for his startup Kandua, and their view on the question of if a startup should be raising money in the first place

1.2 Billion And Counting - How Do Entrepreneurs Look At Africa's Market Size?

Thu, 19 Dec 2019 06:00:23 +0200

One of the most exciting aspects of opportunities in Africa is a function of market size - over 1.2 billion people on the youngest and fastest-growing continent. But the conversation around total addressable market, and true market size opportunity is a lot more nuanced than Africa's topline population number.

2:25 - GreenTec Capital Partner's Maxime Bayen discusses GSMA research on mobile adoption and digital literacy
4:39 - The Subtext's Osarumen Osamuyi on how he thinks about market size and the exercises he uses to better quantify market opportunity
9:41 - NALA's Benjamin Fernandes on their product's impact on addressable market and digital literacy
12:10 - Yoco's Katlego Maphai on how Yoco is targeting non-consumption
14:27 - A discussion with Jehiel Oliver on market-creating innovations
17:48 - Justin and Sayo discuss digital literacy
21:21 - Justin and Sayo look further into expansion as a corollary to the market size conversation

Reaching The Masses - A Conversation On Distribution

Thu, 12 Dec 2019 05:00:02 +0200

In nuanced and fragmented environments, how are startups in African markets getting their products and services in the hands of their customers at the last mile?

1:55 Maxime Bayen, of GreenTec Capital partners and formerly of GSMA, on mobile technology
4:00 Keith Davies, formerly of Zoona, on agent networks
5:24 Katlego Maphai, CEO of Yoco, on building trust offline
6:36 Abolore Salami, CEO of Riby, on B2B2C business models
8:11 Antonio Bruni, CEO of Picup, on last mile delivery
13:50 Justin and Sayo discuss market size

On Leapfrogging

Marcello Schermer, Temie Giwa-Tubosun, Justin Norman — Thu, 05 Dec 2019 05:58:08 +0200

Leapfrogging - what is it? What is it not? What is it good for and what are its limitations? We speak to Yoco's Head of Expansion, Marcello Schermer.

Exploring Sustainable Businesses Models

Thu, 28 Nov 2019 04:00:01 +0200

They say that the difference between the US and Africa is that the US has competition while Africa has complexity. And a big reason for its complexity is a lack of infrastructure.

It compels many startups to build infrastructure, invest in other market-making activities and/or to diversify earlier in their journey to make their businesses work. How are startups across the continent building sustainable businesses in this environment?

2:57 - Kasha's Joanna Bichsel

10:56 - MAX.ng's Tayo Bamiduro & Chinedu Azodoh

18:17 - BRCK's Erik Hersman

23:06 - Hello Tractor's Jehiel Oliver

32:07 - a conversation between Justin and The Flip's b-mic, Sayo Folawiyo.

Solving Problems in Africa by Taking the Worm's Eye View

Thu, 21 Nov 2019 04:00:18 +0200

A tenet of entrepreneurship getting as close to the customer or end-user as possible, to best understand and implement solutions for them. But what does this look like across the continent, where the set of problems and opportunities are unique to the market and context in which entrepreneurs are operating?

In this episode, Justin speaks with founders who are building businesses by intimately understanding the problem and their end-users - by taking the worm's eye view.

3:39 - SafeBoda co-founder Ricky Rapa Thomson

10:46 - Lumkani co-founder and CEO David Gluckman

16:27 - Farmcrowdy founder Onyeka Akumah

23:25 - a conversation between Justin and The Flip's b-mic, Sayo Folawiyo.

Introducing The Flip

Thu, 14 Nov 2019 00:00:22 +0200

Introducing The Flip - an editorial-style podcast exploring contextually relevant insights from entrepreneurs and investors changing the status quo in Africa.

The name The Flip comes from the opportunity to flip the script – question some of the pervasive narratives on entrepreneurship, challenge the ubiquity of Silicon Valley thought leadership, and champion the entrepreneurs building a future inspired by Africa.

Produced and hosted by Johannesburg-based entrepreneur and American expat Justin Norman. Sayo Folawiyo is the executive producer and b-mic.