Squord Academy

Squord Academy

By Dapo Omoniyi and Edosa ObasekiBusiness
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Squord Academy episodes

  • E20 (07/29/23): Patricia boosts security, CBN unfreezes bank accounts, eNaira failure

    This week we discussed the following:

    • Patricia partners with Deimos Security to boost customer account security
    • CBN offers direction to banks to unfreeze 440 personal and company bank accounts
    • eNaira failure acknowledged 2 years after public launch
    • Growth of availability of financial services between Nigeria and Ghana

      • Feel free to share this with your friends and network and let us your thoughts.

      You can follow Squord on Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, join our community on our website or email us at [email protected]

      45 min
    • E18 (7/8/23): Meta launches Threads, Payday's Co-founder quits, Nigeria's FDI turns negative, Wave makes YC's top 50 list.

      This week we discussed the following:

      • Meta's launch of Threads to compete against Twitter
      • Payday's co-founder and COO stepping down after 18months
      • Nigeria's FDI turning negative for the first time since 1995
      • Wave being on the only African startup on Y Combinators list of top 50 companies by revenue

        • Feel free to share this with your friends and network and let us your thoughts.

        You can follow Squord on Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, join our community on our website or email us at [email protected]

        51 min
      • E17 (7/1/23): NDPC investigates online lenders, CBN sets limits on contactless payments, Eyowo's reported shutdown

        This week we discussed the following:

        • The Nigeria Data Protection Commission, NDPC has said it will be investigating online lending firms, also known as loan sharks, as well as some other institutions due to customer complaints.
        • The CBN set daily transaction limits of N50,000 for contactless payments and other guidelines to ensure a seamless rollout of this technology.
        • The reported Eyowo shutdown, which was debunked by the CEO, within 24 hours. Eyowo a fintech company that unifies all the financial tools you need to pay, receive, budget and save money in one place


          • Feel free to share this with your friends and network and let us your thoughts.


          You can follow Squord on Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, join our community on our website or email us at [email protected]

          34 min
        • E16 (6/17/23): Nigeria Floats Naira, Nigeria Passes Student Loan Bill, Termii and Eze Fundraise

          This week we discussed the following:

          • Nigeria officially floating its naira currency after years of sticking with a hard peg that spooked investors and drained dollars from the economy.
          • President Bola Tinubu on Monday, 6/12, signed into law a bill to establish a Students Loan Fund (SLF) to provide interest-free loans to Nigerians seeking higher education.
          • Termii and Eze recent fundraise of $3.65 million and $3.7 million respectively to expand their business within and beyond Africa


            • Feel free to share this with your friends and network and let us your thoughts.


            You can follow Squord on Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, join our community on our website or email us at [email protected]

            1 hr 2 min
          • E15 (6/10/23): Chipper Cash Layoffs, SEC crackdown on Binance, Moove/Uber Saga, Tingo Group and CBN Governor Arrested

            This week, we discussed:

            • Chipper Cash's third round of layoffs within the span of a year
            • SEC issues warnings against Binance Nigeria and the company being unregistered and not licensed to solicit investments from Nigerians
            • Uber drivers complain about the unfair terms being proposed by Moove, the company that provides the car financing option for Uber drivers
            • Hindenburg Group published a report about questionnable practices at Tingo Group and their fraudulent operations.
            • The CBN governor was initially suspended and arrested due to an ongoing investigation with the Naira redesign and rollout that happened between last year and earlier this year


              • Feel free to share this with your friends and network and let us your thoughts.


              You can follow Squord on Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, join our community on our website or email us at [email protected]

              35 min
            • E14 (6/2/23): Patricia Hack, Crisis at Healthlane, Nestcoin's pivot to Onboard, CBN sanctions Fintech

              These past few weeks have been quite a rollercoaster ride! Let's dive into the action-packed highlights we covered. Brace yourself!


              First on the list, Patricia, a Nigerian-based crypto trading platform, got hacked! And guess what? They lost a whopping $2 million of their customers' hard-earned cash. Ouch!


              But wait, there's more! Nestcoin, a blockchain company specializing in cross-border payments, made a mind-boggling announcement. They decided to shake things up by pivoting their entire business strategy to Onboard. Why, you ask? Well, it turns out they took quite a hit from the FTX collapse and needed to make a major comeback.


              Next, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) revoked the licenses of 132 micro-finance banks as they attempt to crack down on the fintech space and cover the loopholes.


              Lastly we dove into the gripping saga of Healthlane. A debt-ridden company with a shaky balance sheet, and to top it all off, a serious lack of transparency towards its customers. But here's the juiciest part: insiders are buzzing with speculation that the CEO, Alain Nteff, might just be cooking up a brand new venture. What could it be?


              You can follow Squord on Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, join our community on our website or email us at [email protected]

              36 min
            • E13 (4/28/23): Mr Eazi sells Zagadat Capital for $1 Billion, Autochek's Acquisition Spree, Q1 Breakdown of Startup Funding

              This week was quite eventful as we delved into three interesting topics. First up, Autochek, an auto tech company, went on another acquisition spree and acquired Autotager in Egypt. This move is part of their strategic plan to expand to North Africa.


              Next up, the Guardian published a report that had our jaws dropping! Apparently, Mr. Eazi sold his capital firm, Zagadat Capital, for a whopping $1 billion. Can you imagine that?


              On a more serious note, we also took a closer look at the Q1 breakdown of startup funding. The numbers were released this week and we found some concerning as well as positive trends.


              To wrap things up, we chatted about the recent news of Tony Elumelu and Femi Otedola acquiring massive shares of Transcorp. Interestingly, Otedola exited his position shortly after acquiring his shares and we had a lively discussion on the potential reasons behind his decision.


              You can follow Squord on Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, join our community on our website or email us at [email protected]

              42 min
            • E12 TC Health: Temitope Coker

              Temitope Coker, an enterprising healthcare writer, had a brilliant idea in 2021 - to gather all her healthcare reports she had crafted over the years and create a platform to raise awareness about the health industry. This gave birth to TC Health, and with her unwavering dedication and persistence, she has successfully grown the platform to great heights. TC Health has now partnered with big names such as WellaHealth, Wefill, and 7RL to spread the word about vital healthcare industry concerns.

              In this fascinating episode of Squord Academy, Temitope generously shares her insights on the healthcare industry in Nigeria. From her thoughts on the recent migration of healthcare workers to the issues that plague the healthtech space, she provides a valuable perspective on how technology can help to address some of these problems. Enjoy this episode as you hear from this visionary leader, who is making a real impact in the world of healthcare.


              You can follow Temitope on LinkedIn and TC health on LinkedIn and on their website.

              You can follow Squord on Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, join our community on our website or email us at [email protected]

              58 min
            • E11 Reni the Resource and Don't Go Broke Trying: Reni Odetoyinbo

              This week we interviewed Reni Odetoyinbo, a content creator who is passionate about strategic marketing, social justice, women’s empowerment, career development and financial literacy. Reni is a Nigerian, based in Canada who has managed to rapidly grow her brand over the past couple of years to where she now has a major following across the globe.


              With the rapid growth of creator economy and the opportunities that lies within that space to individuals and investors, we brought Reni on the podcast to share her experience growing her brand and her thoughts as an African entrepreneur within this space.


              To follow up with Reni, you can find her on:

              Website: www.renitheresource.com

              LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/reniodetoyinbo/

              Instagram, Twitter, Tiktok, YouTube, Pinterest - @xoreni

              "Don't go broke Trying" available on all podcast platforms.

              42 min

            About Squord Academy

            From the publisher's feed

            Squord Academy is the part of the Squord initiative. Our goal is to bring awareness to Africa by getting every day investors and entreprenuers to share their stories on elevating the african economy…