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TechNigeria: A weekly digest of what went down in Nigeria’s tech space

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Tech, in Nigeria, will continue to be a major driver of the economy. Why so? We continue to see more founders spring up with innovative ideas.

This week is nothing different. We recorded a number of these developments. And, here is a run down.

Toju’s launch

During the week, Nigerian fintech startup Toju launched its credit services venture to cater for the unbanked population.

Wondering what the startup is about? Simply put, Toju will be providing alternative credit solutions to anyone looking for a financial partner.

In doing this, we gathered from report that the startup had developed a record management platform for local savings clubs, thrift collectors, microfinance institutions and cooperatives.

In coming months, we can only look forward to developments around the startup. Like promising Nigerian ventures that grew to attain a Unicorn status such as Flutterwave, Andela, etc., will Toju also scale?

Bolt’s new offering

Another major story we tracked is the Bolt’s food delivery service launch which came as the venture seeks to expand its offerings.

READ ALSO: Nigerian edtech startup, Edves, secures $575k to scale venture

Aside the service name as Bolt Food, what else should Nigerians look out for? Like Jumia Food, this is Bolt throwing its hat in the ring to compete.

Before Bolt Food, the Bolt company claims to have under its belt over thirty million customers globally. Can this play favour for Bolt? We can only leave the guess open.

What is certain is that the company evidently has become a major service company in Nigeria, and the new vertical will help it extend its corporate services beyond mobility to food delivery as it continues to leverage technology.

Terawork and the Future of Work accelerator

The week is incomplete without the story of Nigeria’s Terawork’s feature in the Future of Work accelerator.

The feature is special for many reasons. One, because Terawork is the only Nigerian startup getting to the finals alongside three others from other African countries.

The feature comes with Terawork securing 20k in funding from the accelerator. Above everything, the startup can reposition itself in the coming months to compete relatively.

This also means that investors are only focusing on Fintech startups as the four startups here are into helping young people across Africa find jobs, build careers, and prepare for the future of work.

Bitmama’s raiser

A $350k pre-seed funding round by a Nigerian fintech startup, Bitmama, can be said to be the biggest raiser for the week.

Not until recently when fintech players started raising millions of dollars in a round, a $350k is actually a big deal.

What then can this bring to the table in terms of offering? Already the Bitmama team stated that the new raiser is expected to help grow its operational presence as it looks to expand its team, and penetrate new markets across the continent.

Bitmama reminds us of Paystack -expansion, raiser, expansion and then the big acquisition. Will Bitmama become another Paystack? We sit back and watch the dynamics of the industry.

The SmallChops mission

Finally, before drawing the curtain, Nigeria’s foodtech startup, smallChops, revealed its plans to expand venture across Nigeria and Africa.

With the news, we sense that another food chain business seems to be on the rise, and it is doing everything to court the attention of the media.

What should we then expect in coming months and years? Will Africa produce its own MrBiggs or KFC with a touch of tech?

Will all this end as mere media and venture jamboree? Should we accept the claim that the Lagos-based foodtech and Uche Ukonu-founded startup has recorded a 20 per cent month-on-month growth since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic? Should we?

That will be all for now on TechNigeria. See you next week. Selah.

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