Startupinsight

   As global conversations around infrastructure investment continue to intensify, the fourth edition of InfraConnect, held under the theme “Mobilising Capital: Accelerating Africa’s Infrastructure Pipeline ,” was successfully concluded on the 23rd of September 2026 at The Ballroom, Oriental Hotel, Victoria Island, Lagos , marking a significant milestone in strengthening capital mobilisation for Africa’s infrastructure pipeline. Building on the success of its previous editions, the invitation-only event, hosted by Brickstone Africa and co-sponsored by Kenna LP brought together a dynamic cohort of stakeholders including project developers, investors, development finance institutions, government agencies, and financial and legal advisers. The event provided a robust platform to explore practical pathways to strengthen infrastructure pipelines and mobilise capital, deepening knowledge and unlocking innovative approaches to closing Africa’s investment readiness gap. A special p...

  Just as Nigeria sports betting industry started evolving its rapid expansion, it also faces mounting scrutiny over consumer protection, problem gambling, and the financial exposure of retail bettors. In response, fintech developer Utili Loci Ltd has unveiled a data-driven infrastructure model designed to redefine responsible gaming by combining controlled short-term credit, automated spending caps, and real-time behavioral tracking. Known as Still Play, the platform provides a shared architecture that betting operators, telecommunications companies, financial institutions, and regulatory authorities can leverage to monitor wagering activity and mitigate systemic financial risks. Developed independently without government or regulatory sponsorship, the platform embeds responsible gaming mechanisms directly into the betting transaction itself. To address the limitations of applying foreign gambling frameworks to the Nigerian market, the development team adopted an inductive analyti...

   How to Distribute Your Music to Spotify, Boomplay and TikTok: A Guide for Nigerian Independent Artists Finishing a song is a major achievement, but recording the music is only the beginning. The next challenge is getting it onto the platforms where listeners can discover it. For many Nigerian independent artists, this stage creates several questions: Which music distributor should you use? How do you upload music to Spotify and Boomplay? What files do you need? How long does distribution take? And what happens to the royalties generated by your music? This guide explains how to prepare and distribute your music to Spotify, Apple Music, Boomplay, TikTok and other digital platforms while retaining ownership of your work. What does music distribution mean? Digital music distribution is the process of delivering a finished release to streaming services and online music stores. Most major platforms, including Spotify and Apple Music, do not allow independent artists to upload co...

Aurum Digital Consulting Limited has introduced MidlifeCare Africa, a digital platform developed to support African women as they navigate perimenopause, menopause and the broader changes associated with midlife. MidlifeCare Africa, developed by Aurum Digital Consulting Limited, provides African women with private digital tools and practical information to help them better understand their midlife experiences and prepare for healthcare conversations. The platform combines practical information with private digital tools that help women document what they are experiencing, recognise changes over time and prepare for conversations with healthcare professionals. Aurum developed the product in response to what it identified as an important gap in women’s digital health: while considerable attention has traditionally been given to areas such as fertility and pregnancy, women entering perimenopause and menopause also need accessible tools designed around their stage of life. “Women do not st...

 As Nigerian entrepreneurs navigate the challenges of growing their businesses, Grow Enterprise Africa (GEA) is bringing experienced professionals and business leaders together to help founders build the structures, systems and capabilities required for sustainable growth. The organisation officially launched its 2026 SME Accelerator on September 19 at The Good House, Lagos. The eight-week programme selected more than 40 businesses from over 550 applications, bringing together entrepreneurs from 14 Nigerian states. The Accelerator focuses on five critical areas of business development: People & Leadership, Legal & Governance, Marketing & Brand Visibility, Sales & Market Growth, and Finance & Capital Readiness. Its faculty comprises professionals with experience spanning corporate strategy, human resources, governance, financial management and marketing. They include Lolia Kienka, Goodness Armstrong, Rosemond Phil-Othihiwa, Florence Damilola Olatunbosun and Victo...

      By James Moel Today, we look and understudy a great personality in the business world Mballou Fofana, the Philadelphia-based entrepreneur behind Le Mandingue African Restaurant, is expanding her African food business as she moves to take the brand’s products into households across the United States. The planned expansion comes as Fofana continues to build on business interests that include hospitality and real estate, with her property portfolio reportedly valued at about $15 million. Fofana’s rise in business followed a life-changing experience in 1998 when she lost one of her legs in an accident. Rather than allowing the setback to halt her ambitions, she continued to pursue opportunities in the United States, eventually establishing herself as an entrepreneur in the hospitality and property sectors. Her Le Mandingue African Restaurant has operated in the Philadelphia area for more than two decades, serving West African dishes to customers while providing a platfo...

   Kudiwave Technologies Limited has petitioned the Inspector-General of Police, Olatunji Disu, over the alleged transfer and continued withholding of N750 million from its PalmPay account. The company, through its solicitor, Tony Eseigbe & Co., in a petition dated September 14, 2026, is seeking an independent and forensic investigation into the circumstances surrounding the movement of the funds by the Special Fraud Unit (SFU), Ikoyi, Lagos. Kudiwave also challenged allegations linking the money to an alleged “round-tripping” transaction involving funds purportedly originating from United Bank for Africa Plc (UBA). According to the company, the N750 million was received from Nexall Technologies Limited as part of a legitimate commercial transaction in exchange for digital assets. Kudiwave alleged that the SFU, however, linked the funds in its PalmPay account to money purportedly originating from UBA and subsequently moving through several companies. How the N750m Transact...