In the early 2010s, Uber disrupted global transportation by commoditizing an entirely invisible transaction. Driven by a rigid Silicon Valley philosophy, the platform demanded that users maintain an active credit card on file.

This completely divorced the physical act of transport from the cognitive friction of payment. You push a button, a car arrives, and you get out. It was frictionless, seamless, and magical.

But when Uber exported this uncompromising card-only architecture to emerging markets like India and subsequently Africa, the magic broke.

Uber’s frictionless dream crashed into the heavy reality of low credit card penetration and a deep, systemic lack of institutional trust.

To survive, a trillion-dollar tech giant had to humble its global playbook, break its own design rules, and introduce the ultimate friction. They had to introduce physical cash.

They were not alone. Netflix is a platform engineered for 4K Smart TVs and infinite broadband. But when they looked at Africa, they realized they couldn’t just translate their app into local languages. To penetrate the market, they had to fundamentally re-architect their video encoding using AV1 codecs and launch mobile-only plans to combat severe data scarcity.

I constantly see startups making this exact mistake today. When you blindly export Silicon Valley’s obsession with frictionless UI to Lagos or Nairobi, you don’t get a seamless user journey. You build a “Digital Norman Door.” You end up with a product that looks beautiful in an air-conditioned boardroom but completely fails the user in the real world.

In the Global South, falling into this aesthetic-usability trap is fatal. To build products that actually scale here, product architects must stop building for the user they want and start engineering for the human they have.

To do that, we must kill the marketing persona.

The True Barriers of the African Market

Most startups begin their product development by drafting a marketing persona. It usually reads something like this:

“Meet Sarah. She is a 24-year-old professional in Lagos who loves artisanal coffee and wants a faster, more delightful way to send money.”

Sarah is a fantastic tool for an advertising agency. However, she is completely useless to a software product development team.

Knowing Sarah’s hobbies does not help a developer design a secure API, optimize a localized escrow system, or decide whether to build on USSD or React Native.

To build resilient financial infrastructure in Africa, we must utilize Constraint-Based Personas. Instead of defining a user by their desires, we need to define them exclusively by their limitations. We must map out what they cannot do, the hardware they are forced to use, and the trust deficits they navigate daily.

When you look at the hard macroeconomic data of Nigeria, the baseline constraints become very clear.

First, we have the hardware constraint. According to 2023 mobile operating system data from StatCounter, Android controls over 85 percent of the Nigerian mobile market. However, market intelligence reports from the International Data Corporation (IDC) indicate that the average mass-market device is severely limited. These phones typically run on just 2GB to 4GB of RAM and have 32GB to 64GB of internal storage. Users are in a constant state of digital triage, regularly deleting apps just to make space.

Second, we have to account for the data constraint. Internet is not a utility in this market; it is a strictly metered commodity. Based on pricing data tracked by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) and the Alliance for Affordable Internet, the average cost of 1 Gigabyte of data in 2023 was roughly 287 Naira. Against the national minimum wage of 30,000 Naira at the time, 1 Gigabyte of data consumed nearly 1 percent of a user’s monthly income.

Finally, there is the institutional trust constraint. The 2023 EFInA Access to Financial Services in Nigeria survey highlights that while formal financial inclusion hovers around 64 percent, a critical 10 percent of the adult population relies exclusively on informal, offline financial services. These individuals use traditional Ajo or Esusu collectors because they prefer physical human accountability over digital clouds.

When you map these verified constraints, the true architectural challenge reveals itself.

Paga and the Offline Reality

Long before the current era of digital banking, Paga recognized the absolute necessity of constraint-based design.

The friction in the market was obvious. The Nigerian economy was heavily cash-driven, making the act of carrying physical cash dangerous and inefficient. Yet, as EFInA data historically showed, the vast majority of the population was entirely unbanked and disconnected from the internet.

If Paga had designed for “Sarah,” they would have built a heavy, data-intensive mobile app. Instead, they built a constraint persona: a consumer who needs to transfer funds safely but does not possess a smartphone, has zero access to mobile data, and lacks formal digital identification.

This led to a very specific design question: How might we facilitate secure electronic money transfers for users without smartphones, internet, or even modern USSD banking rails?

To answer this, Paga built their foundational MVP architecture around an ingenious SMS-to-Voice flow and a physical agent network. A user could simply send a text message to initiate a transfer. Because SMS is unencrypted and insecure, Paga’s system would instantly trigger an automated voice call back to the user, prompting them to securely enter their PIN on their phone’s keypad to authorize the transaction.

There was no graphical user interface, no 10-megabyte download, and no internet requirement. For those who couldn’t even manage an SMS, Paga deployed human agents across neighborhoods to act as physical cash-in and cash-out nodes. Paga stripped away the aesthetic entirely to solve the core mathematical constraint of the environment. They didn’t build a beautiful app; they built a financial lifeline.

PiggyVest and the Cognitive Constraint

When we move beyond physical hardware limitations, we encounter the psychological barriers of the user. In the financial sector, one of the most difficult constraints to design for is human discipline.

In late 2015, a conversation went viral on Nigerian Twitter. A woman revealed she had saved 365,000 Naira over the course of a year simply by putting 1,000 Naira every single day into a physical wooden savings box, locally known as a ‘kolo’.

This viral moment exposed a massive friction point in the market. The founders of PiggyVest recognized that traditional bank accounts were fundamentally designed for immediate transactions, not sustained saving. Young earners faced severe “spending urgency,” meaning their salaries were spent almost as soon as they hit their accounts. People desperately wanted to adopt a disciplined saving culture, but they were relying on an insecure, physical method because the digital alternatives failed to understand their psychology.

Furthermore, this demographic was operating in a low-trust environment. The market was highly skeptical of digital financial tools, especially following the recent collapse of rampant Ponzi schemes like MMM in Nigeria.

If the founders had designed for a traditional marketing persona, they would have built a standard, flexible digital wallet with a beautiful interface. Instead, they built a constraint persona: a young earner battling daily micro-expenses, who wants to save small amounts but fundamentally lacks the discipline to not spend their own money, and who is highly suspicious of digital platforms.

The resulting “How Might We” question was brilliant. How might we digitize the strict discipline of a physical wooden box, protecting a user’s money from their own spending urges while proving the system is not a scam?

Within two weeks of that viral tweet, the team built the Minimum Viable Product for Piggybank.ng. The platform digitized the wooden box concept by automating daily, weekly, or monthly savings directly into a digital wallet.

But the true genius was in how they designed the constraint. To distinguish themselves from standard bank accounts and promote true saving, they implemented a deliberate friction point. Users could only access their funds for free once every quarter. They essentially digitized the physical friction of “breaking the box.”

To solve the institutional trust constraint, they did not rely on expensive marketing billboards. They relied on raw, organic community proof. When their early users successfully withdrew their locked savings on December 31, 2016, those users took to social media to share their positive experiences. That user-generated validation proved the system worked, instantly bridging the trust gap and fueling their exponential growth the following year.

Moniepoint and the Institutional Trust Constraint

Perhaps the most difficult barrier to cross in the Global South is the lack of institutional trust.

Before founding Moniepoint, Tosin Eniolorunda and his team at TeamApt were building backend software solutions for traditional commercial banks. During this time, they noticed a glaring disconnect. The traditional banking industry was entirely obsessed with building sleek online products for urban, digitally connected areas. Meanwhile, a massive, underserved population across the country was being completely neglected.

This offline demographic faced terrible friction. Transaction failure rates were high, interoperability was poor, and physical ATMs were largely inaccessible. More importantly, a significant portion of this population lacked basic digital literacy.

If you build a state-of-the-art mobile banking app for a market trader who does not understand how to navigate nested menus, you have built a Digital Norman Door. When an unbanked individual loses money in a digital transaction, they do not want to call a toll-free customer support hotline. They want to speak to a human being.

Recognizing this, the team pivoted their business model entirely. They stopped trying to force a digital-only experience and asked a new architectural question. How might we deliver reliable banking infrastructure to offline communities by leveraging pre-existing local relationships rather than demanding digital literacy?

Their solution was the agency banking model. Instead of expecting users to trust a faceless app, Moniepoint placed human agents directly within the communities.

These agents were onboarded by people the community already knew and trusted. The human agent became a physical branch. If a transaction failed or an issue arose, the customer had a familiar, physical point of contact to hold accountable.

Moniepoint also had to engineer around severe hardware constraints at the agent level. Point-of-Sale (POS) devices in the market were highly fragmented and ran on poorly written code. To solve this, the engineering team developed a unified virtual machine environment that allowed their software to be written once and run seamlessly across various hardware manufacturers.

They did not demand that the Nigerian masses adapt to complex software. They adapted their software to operate through trusted human proxies.

Chowdeck and the Vendor Infrastructure Constraint

The constraints of the Global South do not only apply to the end consumer. Often, the most severe friction lies with the merchants and the physical infrastructure required to serve them.

Before Chowdeck entered the market, the primary friction was that existing food delivery services were tailored to a niche, international-style market.

These platforms focused heavily on items like pizza and burgers, which the average Nigerian did not eat on a daily basis. The real, mass-market demand was for local staple foods like Amala and Pounded Yam, but the existing infrastructure simply was not designed to handle the logistical complexities of transporting these local dishes. Furthermore, accepting food delivery in Nigeria often meant accepting a waiting period of two to three hours.

The constraint persona for their merchant side was a local food vendor, or ‘buka’ owner, operating in a highly informal commercial environment. Many of these early vendors did not have the digital literacy or high-end hardware required to manage a complex restaurant-facing tablet application.

The architectural question became clear. How might we integrate local, offline food vendors into a rapid delivery network without forcing them to adopt complex new software?

Because the founders were former software engineers at Paystack, they had the technical capacity to build anything. In fact, they built the very first version of their customer-facing mobile app in just three weeks to capture demand. However, they made a brilliant constraint-based design choice for the backend.

Instead of over-engineering a complex merchant portal that local vendors would struggle to use, they intentionally kept the backend operations heavily manual at the start. When an order came through the customer app, the Chowdeck team coordinated with roadside vendors and riders using direct, everyday communication channels like SMS, WhatsApp, and regular phone calls.

This manual approach allowed them to physically deconstruct the logistics. They mapped the bottlenecks, rider reliability, and vendor preparation times in the real world before they ever tried to automate it with code.

They stripped away the assumption that vendors needed state-of-the-art hardware, choosing instead to meet the merchant exactly where their technological capacity ended. To secure the vendors’ trust, Chowdeck broke industry norms by paying merchants as quickly as possible, ensuring these small businesses had the daily liquidity they needed to survive.

The Blueprint for the Next Billion Users

As a product architect, I constantly see teams fall into the trap of trying to design their way out of foundational infrastructure problems using pretty interfaces. We obsess over pixel-perfect layouts, seamless animations, and the “happy path” of a user journey. But in emerging markets, consumer behavior does not passively adapt to the requirements of Western software. Rather, software must forcefully deconstruct and rebuild itself to survive the physical, financial, and regulatory constraints of the market.

The history of global business expansion is replete with case studies of rigid corporate playbooks collapsing under the weight of localized socio-economic realities. When you look at the trajectory of Paga, PiggyVest, Moniepoint, and Chowdeck, a unified blueprint emerges.

None of these companies succeeded by building frictionless, data-heavy applications for an imaginary, upper-middle-class marketing persona.

They succeeded by looking brutally at the hard metrics of their environment. They accepted that mass-market devices operate on 2GB to 4GB of RAM. They respected the fact that a single gigabyte of data consumes nearly 1 percent of a minimum wage earner’s monthly income. They understood that a massive segment of the population relies exclusively on offline, informal trust networks.

You cannot achieve true scale in the Global South by building a Digital Norman Door. A beautiful application that requires a 4G connection and a modern smartphone in a market dominated by cracked screens and expensive data is a failure of product design.

If you want to build solutions that actually change lives, you have to stop designing for the user you want. Kill the marketing persona, and start architecting for the constraints of the human you have.

About the Author

Faheed Alli-Balogun is a Senior Product Designer, Architect, and active contributor to Africa’s digital ecosystem. With a background spanning product leadership at Chimoney (Techstars ’23) to advising early-stage fintechs, Faheed specializes in open payments infrastructure and the mechanics of trust in digital platforms. As a guest lecturer at institutions like Covenant University and Alabama A&M University (AAMU), he champions “Designing for Agency”, a philosophy dedicated to building resilient, constraint-aware financial products that prioritize the human over the system. He also actively mentors early-stage builders through Dreamax. 

The cover began in November 2024 with every active rider on the platform automatically enrolled. The policy covers accidental medical expenses, temporary disability and income support if a rider cannot work after an accident.

For a sector built on speed, this is an outstanding initiative. Riders keep Nigeria’s delivery apps running, but most operate as self-employed workers with limited protection.

Chowdeck, founded in October 2021, has grown and expanded across cities. It serves over two million customers and works with thousands of food and hospitality businesses. But like many platforms in the gig economy, its riders shoulder daily risks on busy roads.

Across Nigeria, riders working for platforms such as Bolt, Uber, Jumia Food and Chowdeck typically earn between ₦80,000 and ₦120,000 a week. Most are classified as independent workers. That means no paid leave, no pensions and, until recently, little structured insurance.

A 2026 survey found that 64% of location-based gig workers said income from platforms made a good difference to their household finances. The work is important, so is the risk.

Umar Nasir, head of Operations at Chowdeck, said: “riders are a critical part of everything we do at Chowdeck. This partnership with MyCoverGenius is about more than just insurance – it’s about setting a new benchmark for how delivery platforms in Africa should protect and support their people.

“We want every Chowdeck rider to feel secure knowing that their wellbeing is just as important as the meals and packages they deliver every day.”

Adebowale Banjo, chief executive officer at MyCoverGenius, said the company’s mission has always been to make insurance accessible, relevant, and impactful for everyday Africans and partnering with Chowdeck ensures “we’re not only extending protection to thousands of hardworking riders, but also demonstrating how digital platforms can integrate insurance in ways that directly improve lives.”

The timing is another important aspect. Nigeria’s 2026 tax reforms are drawing gig workers into the formal tax net. Riders and freelancers now face compliance obligations that did not apply to many of them before. However, most still lack the benefits tied to traditional employment.

That gap has led to issues about fairness in the fast-growing gig economy. Platforms depend on riders, but riders usually absorb the shocks when accidents happen or demand drops.

Globally, delivery and ride-hailing firms have begun to use welfare benefits to attract and retain workers. Insurance, in particular, is becoming a point of difference.

People are becoming more selective about the apps they use, regulators are paying more attention, and technology, especially artificial intelligence, is becoming deeply embedded into daily digital life.

Some industry analysts predict that by 2026, about 80% of enterprises will be using generative AI, with a large share of app data processed directly on devices.

From financial technology and commerce to health, media, and productivity, consumer apps in 2026 will be smarter and more reliable.

For markets like Nigeria and Africa generally, these changes will go beyond convenience. They could redefine access, inclusion, and scale.

Below are the key consumer app trends to expect in 2026.

Smarter, More Personal Apps

By 2026, AI-priority design will no longer be a rare or premium feature. It will be the baseline of most of the apps launched or updated. Consumer apps will adapt more and learn from user behaviour patterns, location context, and usage history as they get more intelligent.

Research shows that around 64% of consumers prefer personalised experiences, and technology is finally catching up to deliver on this expectation in more meaningful ways.

Instead of static dashboard interfaces, users will interact with apps that can anticipate their needs, like budgeting apps that adjust spending advice based on income changes, shopping apps that can arrange products based on location and current trends, and streaming apps that respond to users’ moods and time of the day.

A key change to also expect is the on-device AI, where more processing happens directly on smartphones rather than cloud-based.

This means:

• Faster responses
• Better privacy
• Lower data usage

This shift matters more to African markets, where data costs, network reliability, and device limitations still affect user behaviour.

However, it is important to note that although more users now prefer personalised app experiences, many still think the benefits outweigh the privacy cost. Users are becoming more discerning, demanding transparency about how their data powers these efficient experiences.

Payments, Commerce, and Super Apps

The boundaries between different categories of apps are now phasing out. Apps that began as simple payments platforms are now evolving to ecosystems where their users can purchase food, buy books, pay bills, and even book rides, all within a single interface.

A good example is Chowdeck, which is gradually evolving from just an app meant for food orders to a full e-commerce super app.

Africa, specifically, is a leader in this super app trend. In a region where  most people uses low cost or budget phones with small storage, apps that combine payments, commerce, and services are the game changers.

Platforms like Opay have evolved from basic payment service to a full digital ecosystem, with over 50 million overall users and 10 million daily active users.

This trend extends beyond Africa. Payments and subscriptions will become the centre of consumer apps in 2026. More apps, whether focused on social media, education, or entertainment, will embed native payments functions, subscriptions, and micro-transactions in the coming months.

However, trust will be a very important factor. Users in 2026 will expect clear transaction histories, faster dispute resolution, and transparent fees. Apps that fail to deliver reliability and security will struggle, no matter how many attractive features they may offer.

Privacy, Trust & Regulation by Design

Bigger changes in privacy and regulations are coming in 2026, as privacy laws are converging around principles such as user control, explicit consent, and more transparency. Consumers are becoming more aware of how their data is collected, stored, and used by online platforms. In response, popular apps are expected to build privacy directly into their design, not hide it in long policies.

Expect to see:

• Clear permission prompts with real choices
• Data dashboards that let users control what they share online
• Fewer “all-or-nothing” consent options

Newer regulations, both global and regional, will influence how apps operate. African countries are also strengthening data protection frameworks for their citizens, and consumer apps targeting these markets will need to comply without reducing user experience quality.

For app developers and software companies, these requirements present both challenges and opportunities. Apps that prioritize privacy will gain competitive advantages.

Transparency has shifted to becoming a product feature, and  clear statements like “We are using your location data to find stock near you” significantly increase trust.

New Interfaces Beyond Touchscreens

The way users interact with apps is also evolving. Manufacturers are exploring other interaction interfaces aside from touchscreens like voice, gestures, and augmented reality.

By 2026, AI chat interfaces, voice commands, and contextual assistants will feel as natural as tapping icons. Many mobile apps will replace complex menus with conversational experiences, especially for tasks like customer support, banking, and content discovery.

Voice interfaces are now more advanced than before. Google confirmed that their first Gemini-powered glasses will be launched in 2026, with audio based models that let users talk naturally to an assistant for navigation, quick answers, and quick photos.

The main aim of these devices is to make phones optional for common tasks, allowing users to access information without reaching for their pockets.

Meanwhile, as smartphones and other gadgets that support augmented reality and gesture control increase, we expect apps that fit into the new change. With gesture support, subtle hand movements can navigate menus, control playback, or confirm actions without even touching screens.

The latest hardware trends will also influence app design in 2026:

• Foldable phones will encourage flexible layouts
• Wearables will demand glance-based interactions
• AR features will enhance shopping, navigation, and learning

Developers will need to rethink assumptions about constant connectivity and premium hardware because relevance in 2026 will depend on adaptability.

Conclusion

Consumer apps in 2026 will not succeed by being more complex. They will succeed by being smarter, more respectful of user data, and better adapted to real-world conditions.

Features that once depended on large data centres will increasingly run on personal devices. Services that once worked in isolation are merging into unified platforms.

Privacy, once traded for convenience, is becoming a competitive edge. And the touchscreen, dominant for nearly two decades, is slowly sharing space with voice, gesture, and augmented reality.

For users, this means simpler and more respectful digital experiences. For developers and companies, especially in Nigeria and across Africa, it is a reminder that trust, local context, and usability matter just as much as innovation.

This was revealed on Monday by Co-founder and Chief Executive Femi Aluko, who described the company’s rise as a clear sign that the on-demand model can succeed at scale in Africa. 

In a LinkedIn post, he said: “Chowdeck just hit 2 million users!” He recalled the company’s early days, noting: “It feels like just yesterday that we started with three riders and two restaurant partners. We now have more than 20k riders across 14 cities in Nigeria and Ghana.”

Chowdeck’s recent drive shows how quickly it has moved from a small experiment to a major logistics company. Founded in 2021, the company has expanded into urban markets including Lagos, Abuja, Accra, and Kumasi.

Its network of over 20,000 riders now supports a growing mix of restaurant deliveries, groceries, and everyday essentials.

The latest achievement comes months after Chowdeck secured $9 million in Series A funding, an investment led by Novastar Ventures with participation from Y Combinator, AAIC Investment, Rebel Fund, GFR Fund, Kaleo, HoaQ, and a series of angel investors, including Paystack founders Shola Akinlade and Ezra Olubi. 

The company said the capital would support its expansion plans in both Nigeria and Ghana and speed up its move into quick commerce.

That strategy, built around dark stores and hyperlocal fulfilment hubs, is designed to cut delivery times. Chowdeck sees it as the backbone of a bigger vision to build what Aluko has previously described as “Africa’s number one super app.”

Africa’s food-delivery sector is expanding at double-digit rates each year, driven by smartphone growth, denser cities, and high demand for convenience. 

While larger global companies such as Jumia Food have struggled to maintain profit, Chowdeck’s locally tuned approach has helped it sidestep many of those challenges.

Aluko, in his message, credited users and partners for the company’s rise. “We are incredibly proud of the technology we’ve built and the logistics network we have established. But most importantly, we are proud of our ecosystem: our customers, our riders, and our vendor partners.” 

He added: “I am really grateful to our team, customers, riders and partners for coming on this journey with us. Thank you so much for coming on this journey with us. It’s still Day 1!”

Competition in Africa’s delivery market is far from settled, but Chowdeck is highly focused on enlarging its lead and testing how far its model can stretch across the continent.

In a post on X, Chief Executive Officer Femi Aluko announced, “I am super pumped to share that last month, @chowdeck hit over 1 million orders in Nigeria in a single month! ” He added that while recent weeks had not been perfect, the company was “listening, learning, and fixing things quickly.”

According to Aluko, Chowdeck’s daily orders have climbed from an average of around 30,000 to more than 40,000 and continue to rise. The pace of this growth shows the company’s widening reach across Nigerian cities and its recent expansion into Ghana.

Founded in 2021, Chowdeck has built a strong foothold through speed, consistent delivery, and customer-focused incentives. Its “Rider Games” programme, ChowScore loyalty system, and referral discounts have helped it attract and retain a fast-growing base of users. 

What began with just a few hundred customers now serves over a million monthly across Lagos, Abuja, Ibadan, Port Harcourt, and other cities.

The company’s expansion strategy has been deliberate. In June 2025, Chowdeck acquired Mira, a point-of-sale startup created by former Flutterwave and Paystack employees, to strengthen its merchant ecosystem. This move added payment processing, inventory management, and financing tools to the platform, aligning with Chowdeck’s quick commerce vision. 

Two months later, it secured $9 million in Series A funding led by Novastar Ventures, joined by Y Combinator, Founders Factory Africa, and Voltron Capital.

Chowdeck’s rapid growth comes amid the exit of competitors such as Jumia Food and Bolt Food, both of which withdrew from Nigeria after struggling with thin margins and high costs of operation. Their departure left a gap in several markets, one that Chowdeck has been quick to fill.

In Ghana, where the company launched earlier this year, it reached 1,000 daily orders within three months, three times faster than it managed during its initial rollout in Nigeria. This achievement shows strong demand and also operational efficiency refined over time.

Despite facing challenges with support and logistics, Aluko credits customer trust and patience as central to the company’s progress. “This milestone reminds us of what is possible when people believe in what we’re building,” he said. “Cheers to 1M orders! It’s still Day 1, and there are many more wins to come.”

The investment round was led by Novastar Ventures, with participation from Y Combinator, AAIC Investment, Rebel Fund, GFR Fund, Kaleo, and HoaQ.

Co-founder and CEO Babafemi Aluko says the company will use the funds to extend its reach, shorten delivery times, and open new fulfilment hubs. “We’re thrilled about this round as it brings us closer to our vision of becoming Africa’s number one super app,” he said.

Founded in October 2021 by Aluko, Olumide Ojo, and Lanre Yusuf, Chowdeck has grown from 300 users to 1.5 million customers in under four years. It now operates in 11 cities, relying on a network of more than 20,000 riders. Over half of its deliveries in dense urban areas are made by bicycle, keeping costs low and operations sustainable.

The company’s entry into Ghana in May 2025 illustrates its measured approach. Within three months, it was processing 1,000 daily orders without paid advertising, targeting 5,000 by September 2025. Aluko insists the company doesn’t expand into any city without a plan to break even in weeks.

A major part of the new strategy is quick commerce, ultra-fast delivery using “dark stores” and hyperlocal logistics hubs. Chowdeck aims to open 40 such stores by the end of this year and 500 by 2026, adding two to three each week.

The company has also moved into software. In June 2025, it acquired Mira, a point-of-sale provider for restaurants and hospitality businesses. Mira’s inventory tracking and order management tools will be integrated into Chowdeck’s platform, turning it into a combined logistics and operational support service for vendors.

The funding and expansion come at a time when several foreign competitors have scaled back operations in West Africa, including Bolt Food and Jumia Food. 

For lead investor Novastar Ventures, Chowdeck’s success lies in execution and local market knowledge. “Chowdeck is building the future of logistics for African cities,” said partner Brian Waswani Odhiambo. “With deep local insight, a sustainability-first approach, and impressive execution, it is redefining last-mile delivery on the continent.”

In 2024, the total value of meals delivered through Chowdeck was six times higher than the previous year, and by mid-2025, it had already surpassed that total. The company’s disciplined, profit-focused approach contrasts with global quick commerce players like Gorillas and Getir, which have burned through vast sums before retreating from markets.

With this latest round Chowdeck is strengthening its locally tailored model to capture market share and avoid the costly pitfalls that have tripped up others.

With this acquisition, value not yet disclosed, Chowdeck is no longer just a delivery company. It is becoming an infrastructure provider for the food, retail, and hospitality businesses it serves.

Mira’s technology, a suite of POS tools that include inventory management, payment processing, invoicing, and financing options, will now be integrated directly into Chowdeck’s platform. 

This means that the same company that handles a vendor’s deliveries could soon manage its entire back-end operations.

Ted Oladele will take up a new role as Head of Product at Chowdeck. His co-founder, Ibojo, is stepping away from tech to take a career break after nearly a decade in the industry. Several other Mira employees will join Chowdeck’s team to build out the new business segment.

The acquisition comes at a time when Chowdeck is pursuing rapid growth. Since launching in 2021 with just 300 users, the company now claims over a million active users per month. 

Its delivery fleet has also grown to more than 10,000 riders across multiple Nigerian cities and Accra, Ghana, a market it entered recently and says it’s working to be the go-to platform far quicker than it did at home.

The last-mile delivery sector in Nigeria is facing challenges. Logistics firms face razor-thin margins, poor road networks, rising fuel prices, and consumers unwilling to pay more for faster service. 

Jumia Food, Bolt Food, Sendy, and Hytch have either exited or pivoted due to the hostile conditions. With investor appetite drying up, companies still in the race are being forced to rethink what they are and who they serve.

Chowdeck is doing just that. “For a long time, we’ve focused more on the customer side than on the restaurant, supermarket, and pharmacy side,” said CEO Femi Aluko. “But as we begin to expand, we’re paying deeper attention to the vendor side.”

With Mira, Chowdeck gains real-time visibility into in-store inventory and operations, a longstanding problem in the food delivery world. Customers often order items that are out of stock, leading to cancelled orders and frustration. 

Delivery platforms try to solve this by placing human agents in restaurants to manually track inventory, but it’s clumsy and inefficient.

Osarumen Osamuyi, founder of the research publication Subtext, said, “The challenge is that it’s difficult to solve this problem without having a monopoly on the market because the restaurants need to be able to sell on multiple aggregators.” He adds, “Being integrated with the inventory management system is a much more elegant way of doing that.”

By plugging directly into vendors’ inventory systems, Chowdeck eliminates guesswork. Fewer cancellations, faster delivery, better user experience and for vendors, more predictability.

But it’s not just about user satisfaction. The data Mira provides gives Chowdeck a clearer picture of how vendors run their businesses, what’s selling, what’s not, when cash flow dips. 

With that insight, Chowdeck can offer targeted financing or operational support, opening up a new revenue stream and strengthening vendor retention.

It’s a model that’s already been tested abroad. U.S.-based DoorDash acquired Bbot to expand into in-store dining systems. Square evolved from payments to become an all-in-one solution for SMEs, integrating e-commerce and lending. 

Chowdeck is borrowing a similar playbook and adapting it to Nigeria’s food retail sector.

This also puts Chowdeck on a collision course with fintech giants like Moniepoint, which recently acquired a POS startup to deepen its own play in retail. Competition will be fierce, and the stakes are high, bthe benefits could be transformative.

From the outside, it looks like Chowdeck is building a moat by embedding itself in the operations of the businesses it serves. This makes it harder for rivals to poach its vendors and gives Chowdeck control over a larger part of the value chain. It’s no longer just moving food, it’s powering the business behind the food.

Expanding into the fintech layer brings new regulatory checks. Scaling a POS business in Nigeria demands more support infrastructure, customer service, and technical capacity, all of which cost money. 

There’s also the question of team dynamics and integration. Samuel Frank, an analyst at Sahara Impact Ventures, warns: “Acquisitions can lead to higher operational costs, especially with staffing. It’s not always clear how teams will merge or how fast the value will materialise.”

The company already has a partnership with Chicken Republic and has experimented with loyalty programmes and discount subscriptions. It’s also working with cloud kitchens and virtual brands to increase profit margins.

The food delivery market in Nigeria is expected to hit $14.41 billion by the end of 2025. Urbanisation is speeding up, and demand for convenience is rising. If Chowdeck can combine speed, affordability, operational support, and in-store accuracy, it might take over.

The country is making strides in AI, blockchain, and cybersecurity, while also facing challenges in broadband penetration and telecom infrastructure.

Key Trends in Nigeria’s Tech Economy (2025)

Lagos as a Global Tech Hub – Ranked the fastest-growing tech ecosystem globally, with over 1,500 tech companies in Yaba.
AI Accelerator with Meta – A new program supporting AI startups in agriculture, health, finance, and education.
Blockchain & Cryptocurrency Growth – Nigeria is developing a regulatory framework for digital assets.
Cybersecurity Summit – Focused on AI-powered threat detection and digital identity protection.
Fintech Dominance – Nigeria attracts 35% of Africa’s venture capital, with Flutterwave valued at $3 billion.
Digital Accessibility Issues – 35 million Nigerians with disabilities face challenges in digital inclusion.
Emerging Tech Skills – Nigerians are learning AI, blockchain, and cybersecurity to compete globally.
Startup Funding & Expansion – Companies like Moove.io and Chowdeck are securing major investments.

Innoson vs Nord: The “Tech Bro” and The “Village Billionaire”. Find out more here.

Themed ‘Empowering Youth Through Technology, Innovation and Entrepreneurship’, the summit included a series of thought-provoking panel discussions, a mentoring session  and an interactive workshop designed to equip young Nigerians with the skills, insights and networks needed to thrive in today’s tech-driven world.

Commenting about the event, Phil Oduor, head of Policy Programs, Sub-Saharan Africa said,

“At Meta, we believe that today’s youth are tomorrow’s change-makers. Through initiatives like the Youth Summit, we aim to foster innovation, promote digital literacy and empower young Nigerians with the tools and opportunities to realise their potential and contribute to Nigeria’s growing digital economy.”

Delivering the keynote address, Femi Aluko, CEO/Co-Founder, Chowdeck, shared his journey of breaking barriers to achieve success in tech.

He encouraged attendees to embrace the limitless opportunities within today’s technology ecosystem.

A panel discussion, led by Chinny Francis, Public Policy Manager at Meta, featured panellists Nifemi Akinwamide, Head of Operations, Alt School; Adaora Mbelu, Co-Founder of Lumination Global and Obaloluwa Adeagbo, Marketing Lead at Talstack. They shared valuable insights about the future of work, emphasising the importance of storytelling to build a personal brand, practicing self-awareness, developing soft skills, lifelong learning and honing problem-solving skills to thrive in a digitally transformed world.

Francis Sani, Technical Adviser for Innovation, Entrepreneurship & Capital at the Federal Ministry of Communications, Innovation & Digital Economy, spoke at the event.

He highlighted the 3 Million Technical Talent (3MTT) program, emphasising that the program aims to build Nigeria’s technical talent backbone to drive the digital economy and position Nigeria as a net talent exporter.

He encouraged youth to take advantage of this opportunity.

Another panel of industry experts took the stage during the ‘Lunch and Learn: Navigating Entrepreneurship in a Rapidly Changing Landscape’ session, moderated by Sade Dada, Head of Public Policy for Anglophone West Africa at Meta.

Seye Bandele, CEO of PaidHR and Damilola Teidi-Ayoola, head of Platform and Networks at Ventures Platform Fund, shared their invaluable insights.

Seye highlighted the importance of grit, curiosity and candour, while Damilola reinforced the need to understand one’s target audience, deliver value through their business and embrace data-driven decision-making in the dynamic entrepreneurial landscape.

The event also featured inspiring conversations with leading figures in the creative industry. Miss Techy, an award winning tech content creator and Salem King, a creator, storyteller, author and speaker, shared their experiences and advice on achieving long-term success.

Attendees also benefited from an interactive workshop and a mentoring session, where industry experts shared practical advice and strategies for entrepreneurs and tech enthusiasts.

Meta Youth Summit 2024 highlights a commitment to driving positive change, championing youth empowerment and advancing economic opportunities in Nigeria.

Through investments in key areas—such as the creative industry, digital literacy, economic impact and youth job training—Meta is dedicated to empowering young Nigerians to thrive in today’s tech-driven world.

Verve Payment Cards in Nigeria, Africa’s largest consumer market and its pioneer country of issuance have now surpassed 70 million issued payment cards to date. This development comes 15 months after the scheme announced it had issued 50 million payment cards in Nigeria in July last year, translating to +40% growth in issuance volumes YoY.

Over the last few years, Verve has grown to become the payment card of choice across various tiers of banking service and particularly within the burgeoning fintech/neobank space in Nigeria, on the back of significant strategic partnerships across commercial and microfinance banking spheres, as well as fintechs, OFIs and public sector due to sustained innovation and demonstrated understanding of the requirements of its local markets.

As Africa’s premier and leading domestic payment cards scheme, Verve remains focused on addressing peculiar market challenges in Africa by providing secure and cost-effective payment options for individuals and businesses to exchange value, offering both virtual and physical cards that facilitate payment for an increasing number of international services in local currency.

In the last 3 years, Verve has made significant progress in this regard, having achieved merchant acceptance with platforms such as Google, Spotify, Netflix, Showmax, Amazon Prime, Facebook, Microsoft, Uber, and Flywire , to mention a few, underscoring a strong resolve to continue to drive relevant partnerships that provide its users in Africa convenient opportunities to access global services in local denominations.

Outside Nigeria, Verve cardholders are provided with the benefit of using the Verve card in Nigeria and over 21 other African countries, underscoring the company’s resolve to ensure the seamlessness of transactions across the continent, particularly for the critical mass of consumer demographics, whilst driving value and efficiency for African financial institutions.

Particularly noteworthy, are rapidly expanding issuing and acceptance partnerships across East Africa, including major financial institutions including the 2 largest financial institutions KCB Group and more recently Equity Bank, in addition to a growing network of savings and credit societies (SACCOs) across Kenya and Uganda.

Speaking on this latest business milestone Chief Executive Officer (CEO) for Verve International, Vincent Ogbunude, asserted that Verve continues to provide innovative ways to make transactions and payment more secure and convenient for customers, not only in Nigeria across Africa and beyond, whilst providing unparalleled business value for business partners from both issuing and acquiring perspectives.

In his words,

“At Verve International, we continue to consolidate our delivery of global-standard payment solutions howbeit essentially tailored to economic and operational realities of the markets where we play across Africa, whilst leveraging value-adding partnerships that ensure we scale our impact and turbo-charge financial inclusion on the African continent. We are greatly delighted again at this point to celebrate another phenomenal milestone, having added 20 million new payment cards to our base in Nigeria, for which we are extremely appreciative of our issuing partners as well as our loyal cardholders…”

It would be recalled that Verve, Africa’s largest domestic payments card and token brand recently launched the fifth edition of its Goodlife National Consumer Promo, a reward program designed to engage and reward its millions of cardholders.

The promo, which runs from August 15 to December 31, 2024, offers instant discounts and rewards for Verve cardholders at selected merchants and retail outlets across Nigeria, including NNPC Retail Limited, Addide, The Place, Sweet Sensation and Chowdeck, among others.

Verve international, a subsidiary of the Interswitch Group, Africa’s leading integrated digital payments and commerce enabler is the first EMV-certified pan-African domestic payment card scheme (a subsidiary of the Interswitch Group), issuing cards and payment solutions to individuals, issuers, and organizations; and remains committed to pushing the boundaries in terms of customer experience and payment possibilities.

Cardholders have come to regard Verve as a safe, convenient and reliable payment solution for everything payment. Verve cards can be used across a wide range of payment channels like Point of Sale (POS) terminals, Automated Teller Machines (ATMs), Agency banking channel, Web / eCommerce, and Mobile Apps.