Category: Our Female Founders

Still in the spirit of International Women’s Day and celebrating inspiring women in finance, we decided to feature Solape Akinpelu, the CEO of HerVest, a fintech company pioneering inclusive finance for African women. Solape shared her insights on thriving and making a name for yourself as a female in the finance industry, a male-dominated field, using her experience as an example.

Solape Akinpelu’s journey exemplifies resilience and innovation in navigating the male-dominated landscape of finance. As the CEO of HerVest, she not only leads a groundbreaking fintech initiative but also embodies the ethos of empowering African women economically. Solape’s determination to break barriers and foster inclusivity serves as a beacon for aspiring female professionals in finance. Through her leadership and vision, she inspires a new generation of women to pursue their ambitions fearlessly, demonstrating that gender should never be a limitation in achieving success in any industry. Her story highlights the importance of representation in creating a more equitable and diverse financial ecosystem.

Can you tell us about a specific instance where you had to overcome a stereotype or challenge related to your gender while building your name in the finance industry? How did you use that experience to further empower yourself and also inspire others?

I always say the financial services were made for people and not for women and this is evident in the bottom-up structure from leadership to participation. I knew it wasn’t going to be easy from the get-go. I mean we are still celebrating first female bank managers in 2024. I however underestimated the stereotyping and challenges when it came to raising funds for my company HerVest.

Traditionally, when it comes to credit, women are not high-interest groups for traditional banking institutions. Access to finance is a big issue. While male founders were raising seed rounds for their companies in 2020, 2021, and 2022, we could count blindfolded how many female founders were backed by investors. Statistics show that women raised only 2% of VC funding in 2021.

To overcome this challenge, I had to work on my pitching skills and develop a confident presence and personal agency. I sought constructive feedback after pitches. I sought guidance from successful female entrepreneurs who had gone through similar experiences and learned valuable strategies to navigate the fundraising landscape. I also focused on building strong relationships with potential investors, showcasing my expertise, and highlighting the unique perspective and value that being a female founder brings to the table.

Through this experience, I learned the importance of resilience and determination in the face of gender stereotypes in the finance industry. I used this setback as an opportunity to further empower myself by honing my pitching skills, refining my business strategy, and staying true to my vision. I actively participated in panels, workshops, and networking events to raise awareness about the challenges women face in fundraising and to provide guidance on overcoming these obstacles.

By sharing my story and experiences, I aimed to empower other women to break barriers, challenge stereotypes, and succeed in the finance industry as entrepreneurs.

HerVest primarily focuses on providing women smallholder farmers with credit for their agribusinesses. This March, we expanded our credit services to WSMEs in the country.

Our goal is to close the $42bn gender finance gap in Africa with over 15.6bn trapped in agriculture. We resonate with the financing struggle and are positioned to help female entrepreneurs scale this hurdle.

Many women in male-dominated fields have unique stories of forging their own paths and building their reputations. What steps did you take to stand out and become recognized for your expertise, and how did you find your voice amidst established figures in the industry?

First, I’d say continuous learning was key. I made sure to stay updated with the trends and advancements in my field by attending workshops, and conferences, and pursuing relevant certifications. I am a certified Personal Finance Coach from the National Financial Educator’s Council in America.

Secondly was being intentional about my network. This is my greatest asset. I always say that you are as wealthy as the people you know. There is no one too big or small that I can’t talk to maintain a valuable and healthy relationship with. I actively networked with professionals in my industry, both men and women and sought mentorship from established figures.

Additionally, I showcased my expertise by regularly publishing articles, giving presentations at conferences, and participating in panel discussions to showcase my knowledge in the field.

Lastly, I’d say I embraced my unique perspective as a woman in a male-dominated field and used it to my advantage to bring fresh insights and ideas to the table.

Looking back on your career journey, what advice would you give to younger women starting a career in the financial industry who aspire to make a name for themselves?

I’d say put in the work. Nothing good comes without discipline and diligence. Network horizontally and vertically. Volunteer at relatable industry events. Attend conferences. Technology has made it easier to connect with almost anybody. Additionally, try to build diverse experiences across the financial sector. Find out what ticks in insurance, wealth management, pensions, fintech and so on. Lastly and importantly, be impact-oriented on your job. Working in financial services is more than a role. It affects lives and has a ripple effect on nations and economies. So back it up with a bigger purpose. Be intentional. Be committed.

Ifeoma Nwobu is a visionary entrepreneur with multidimensional talents and interests. Currently the COO of Sendstack, a mobility tech company that is revolutionising the way African businesses operate, she has played a pivotal role in customer acquisition and driving the growth of the company. 

In 2020, Ifeoma Nwobu was employed to lead growth at Sendstack for the product they were working on at the time. A while after they had been working on this idea, she realised that she could be more. So, her then employer, Emeka Mba-Kalu who is now her co-founder, took the bet on her and gave her the opportunity to function as his business partner.

Prior to her work with Sendstack, Ifeoma spent over five years in the fashion industry, honing her skills in marketing, strategy, and operations. With a keen eye for detail and a passion for excellence, she quickly made a name for herself as a rising star in the industry, earning accolades and recognition for herself.

With an ever-growing desire to make a bigger impact in the African business scene, Ifeoma transitioned to the logistics sector, where she saw tremendous potential for development using technology to build scalable solutions with her team. She is one of the driving forces behind the company’s success, leveraging her deep expertise in strategic thinking and communications to help businesses grow.

Sendstack is digital logistics infrastructure for African businesses. Starting out with solutions tailored to last-mile logistics, they are revolutionising the way delivery operators manage their customer operations and making it possible to scale. 

It has helped 150+ delivery companies  scale their operations and is supporting growth of  over 6000 SMEs through higher customer retention. The startup has processed over 40k deliveries and was accepted in the ODX (1) accelerator. Because of Ifeoma, it is an Aurora Tech Awards 2023 nominee as one of the best female-founded startups.

On peculiar challenges she has faced as a female co-founder, she has battled with personal insecurities about being a woman in a space that is predominantly run/controlled by men but over time, she learnt that those feelings came from things she negatively projected on herself and did some mental/emotional work on herself to scale past them. 

Right now, she is at a point where she regards herself based on her competence and abilities rather than just her gender.

Per discrimination, she has not encountered any gender-based discrimination. Proffering solutions to gender equity achievement in Nigeria, Ifeoma thinks it is a broad conversation but essentially, she thinks we need to be persistent about keeping the right leaders and rooting out the bad ones. 

That way, we can trust them to make good decisions for the greater good to most groups of people, if not all and in times when those decisions don’t yield expected results, having leaders that at least take responsibility and submit themselves to accountability would be a step in the right direction.

Rukayat’s resolve to create a financial solution was borne out of desire and desperation to liberate the underserved people in Nigeria. Due to the lingering issues of poverty and inaccessible funds, she opted to build Regxta.

Rukayat Bello is the CEO and co-founder of Regxta. She has B.sc degree in Kwara State University where she graduated as one of the best students in the school. She is a member of Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN). 

She  has over 6 years audit, banking and finance experience. Rukayat is also a software developer. She has attended several trainings in sales & marketing, business development & strategy implementation, she has exceptional Skills in Credit analysis, Audit, Finance, Customer Service and digital marketing. 

Rukayat is keen to help people succeed, especially the micro businesses and that’s why people call her “Madam Grassroot.”

Her company, Regxta, is an inclusive digital platform that provides quick, easy and simple access to financial services for the Unbanked and Micro businesses in Africa. 

Its mobile app is powered by advanced data science and artificial intelligence that instantly underwrites and disburses loans to people who have no borrowing history. 

Also, its users can open an account, save their money and generate financial records, through their trained community agents. Since inception, Regxta has been able to achieve $600k disbursement, $72k revenue, 2216 customer base, and over 8,000 have been impacted socially. 

Furthermore, it has recorded $70k angel investment, partnership with ARM, Providus bank, etc., is member of Fintech association of Nigeria, has over 60 micro businesses registered with the Corporate Affairs Commission, and has a money lenders licence. 

On her challenges as a female founder, she says that lack of funding has been a major issue because many investors tend to trust men startup founders more. They believe men can manage funds more effectively.

Also, she mentions gender bias. In her words, It’s presumed that women are compassionate and emotional in nature. Hence, many women struggle to be taken seriously.

Additionally, work-life balance is a challenge. Women traditionally have more social responsibilities than men. They are viewed as primary caregivers for their children, they’re expected to manage the household and devote time to their families.

On how gender equity can be achieved, Rukayat opines that engaging women in the family and community levels can work. Also, reducing economic and cultural barriers to female education is a necessary step to be taken. In addition, promoting women’s equal representation in leadership in the workforce should be taken seriously.

Just like many founders, Lilian Makoi, co-founder of Mipango faced difficulties when starting. At some point, she and her founding partner were doing a self –assessment of the financial state they were in against the opportunities they have had in their careers. Unfortunately, It didn’t look good. 

With no savings and bare minimal investments, they knew they had to take drastic actions. During the course of their conversations, they admitted they had bad spending habits, driven by impulse purchases. The plan was to try out apps that can help them become better spenders and build a habit of saving. 

A week later, they were both frustrated because while they could find apps that helped them record their transactions, plan budgets and stuff, that was not the crux of their problems. The apps did not curb their spending habits nor provide financial education to be better spenders, savers and investors.

After a second round of trying a few other solutions, Lilian and her founding partner decided they were going to build a solution that works for people who have an income and would need help managing and growing what they have, especially women.

They teamed up to research if the problem was common amongst friends and relatives, got their answers, and designed the solution’s prototype. Afterwards, they pitched the idea to a developer they knew and a few other friends to now build a pilot/ MVP app which birthed Mipango.

Mipango Fintech is a Tanzania based Fintech that builds Digital Solutions and Content Creation aimed at driving Financial Literacy AND Financial Inclusion to the Mass population.

Since inception, Mipango has recorded over 15,000 users, has been accelerated by PesaTech Accelerator, NVIDIA Inception and  LOFT Fintech Africa Accelerator. Also, it won the Wazo Challenge by Startup, Raseau.

On the peculiar challenges she has faced as a female founder, she thinks raising capital for female founders can be difficult. She says that it probably becomes easier to raise when a company grows to Series A, B,C+ but the hardest is raising at the idea stage. 

Also, many VCs would pick one female founded startup to have in their portfolio just to tick the box, while 90% of the startups in their portfolio remain male founded. 

At this rate, female founders are scrambling for a very small cake. She reveals that Mipango found it easier to raise through donors and crowdfunding to get ourselves started.

On how gender equity can be achieved in Africa, Lilian asserts that more gender specific VCs and funding opportunities should be pushed as priorities. 

Further, large corporations could be given some tax benefits if they invest a percentage of their profits to female founded startups and SMEs.

Also, investors should  require the VCs they work with to pick at least 40% female founded startups that are doing well and have favourable prospects. 

Similarly, she advises that there should be initiatives to drive the supply of quality female founded startups and the ecosystem should also push to have gender-specific accelerators and incubators.

Juliet Odumosu didn’t suddenly become the co-founder of Nguvu Health, one of the largest healthcare startups in Africa. It took years of sheer grit, determination, and perseverance to be able to reach her heights.  

She was fortunate to begin in a very small but fast-growing company. She tried on many hats from front desk/executive assistant (the role she was originally hired for) to customer success executive, HR/Admin, quality control manager, and corporate sales. Etc. 

This helped transform Juliet from the fresh-out-of-school graduate who was just excited about the office WIFI in downloading movies/series to a professional who is confident she’s found her career passion in Media and Marketing.

During Covid-19, her friend and now co-founder, Joshua Koya, reached out to share his idea about building a teletherapy platform for Africans and asked Juliet to come on onboard with content marketing. He presented her with the opportunity because he was aware that was a field she had begun exploring. 

It is what birthed her journey in Nguvu Health. The startup is a teletherapy platform providing easy and affordable access to licensed therapists for Africans both at home and in the diaspora. Charged with changing the narrative around mental health in Africa, they provide video and text sessions with qualified clinical psychologists. 

The challenges Juliet had faced aren’t really peculiar to her being a woman, but as a young founder. She moved from just two years of working as an employee under a supervisor to being a supervisor/founder. That huge responsibility came with a pang of imposter syndrome and it made her triple her efforts. 

She shares the steps she took to become a successful co-founder. In her words,

“Investing in a power team who also shares the same vision you have for the company. You can’t get it wrong with the right team. Promoting top-to-bottom transparency within the company. You want the trust of your team members. 

During tough as well as rosy times, you’ll be grateful for it. Focus on generating sustainable revenue as opposed to relying solely on raised funds. The investment market is known to be unpredictable and susceptible to rapid changes. Don’t peg the growth of your company with those fluctuations.”

Juliet Odumosu

Susan Olapade is a co-founder of Akaani, a technology supply-chain startup that utilizes a two-sided marketplace powered by Artificial Intelligence, and a recipe platform to offer an innovative commerce experience for both grocery customers and sellers. 

Susan is an experienced professional with a background in e-commerce, IT consulting, and finance & insurance industries. She earned her first degree in Chemical Engineering but found her true passion at the intersection of Technology and Business. 

With a keen interest in integrating cutting-edge technology in a wide range of business applications, Susan is dedicated to increasing operational efficiency, driving revenue growth, and improving customer experience.

She comes from a family of entrepreneurs. After completing her undergraduate studies in Nigeria in 2017, she started her own business specialising in gourmet and customized brownies in Lagos, Nigeria during her national service until she left Nigeria in 2021.

In 2019, she joined AXA as a Business Optimization Analyst, where she gained experience analysing and building automation solutions for finance, risk management, human resources, sales, liquidations, and claims processes.

Exposure to technology at AXA greatly influenced how she managed her baking business. She trained her staff members to leverage platforms such as Flutterwave and Paystack to improve efficiency and integrated technology into their everyday processes.

In 2021, she met Richard Igbiriki, the CEO/CTO/Founder of Akaani, in New York. During one of their discussions, they shared their frustrations about the difficulties in getting African groceries delivered to our doorsteps. 

This led Susan to conduct research on African stores in New York City, where she discovered that only 14% of the 70 stores sampled offered doorstep delivery. Upon sharing her findings with Richard, he revealed that he was already working on a startup to address this issue. 

Intrigued by the idea, Susan expressed her interest in working on the project with Richard. She was particularly drawn to the idea of providing an experience that catered to the food needs of Africans in the diaspora, as she has a passion for cooking. 

Richard, the CTO/CEO/Co-founder at Akaani agreed to bring her on board as the COO/Co-founder, and she enthusiastically accepted the opportunity. By building a platform, Akaani has been able to serve users in both Nigeria and the USA simultaneously. 

Though these are very different markets, their technology has enabled them to scale quickly and manage distinct business models. In Nigeria, Akaani is designed to provide an online shopping experience for everyday grocery products, whereas in the US, the focus is specifically on African grocery products.  

“Managing my own business and working as an automation developer inspired me to pursue an advanced degree at the intersection of Business and Tech. I’m currently completing my Master’s degree in Management of Technology at NYU, which has been a fantastic career decision. The program has provided me with valuable insights on managing technology-driven businesses, and I’m using this knowledge to shape the way I’m building my startup, Akaani.”

– Susan Olapade

Per gender challenges as a female cofounder, Susan has not faced any gender-related challenges while working with her male co-founder. However, she encountered a sexist comment from a male African store owner during market research in NYC. 

He insinuated that Susan should be focused on getting married instead of building an African grocery business due to the challenges of the industry. This comment made her feel demeaned, as it suggested that her gender made her incapable of succeeding in the business. 

On how gender equity can be achieved in Africa, Susan notes that certain industries or professions are considered “male-dominated” or “female-dominated.” For example, men are more likely to be employed in higher-paying industries such as technology and engineering. 

On the other hand, women are more likely to work in lower-paying industries such as education and healthcare, resulting in a gender pay gap and lack of female representation. In light of this, she asserts that there needs to be a change in the mindset and attitudes of the Nigerian society towards job roles. 

Also, sensitization programs and campaigns can help to raise awareness of the importance of gender equity by encouraging women to start taking on roles that are traditionally reserved for men. Sensitization can also help reduce gender biases that can impact hiring decisions, promotions, and pay raises.