In a significant blow to Nigeria’s fintech ecosystem, Okra, a pioneering open banking startup, closed shop in May 2025, six years after its launch, with its CEO and co-founder, Fara Ashiru Jituboh, joining UK-based Kernel. Renowned for its API infrastructure that seamlessly connected bank accounts to third-party applications, Okra is now returning an estimated $4 million to $5.5 million in unspent funds to its investors, according to a TechPoint report.

Kernel cited strategic and market challenges as key reasons for the shutdown, offering a candid look into the complexities of scaling a fintech venture in Africa.

Founded in 2019 by Fara Ashiru Jituboh and David Peterside, Okra aimed to revolutionise financial access across Africa by building a robust open banking API infrastructure. The startup enabled secure, real-time data exchange between banks, fintechs, and customers, fostering seamless financial services. Okra quickly gained traction, partnering with major Nigerian banks and platforms like Renmoney, Branch, Bamboo, and AIICO Insurance. By 2020, its API usage surged by 175% in a single quarter, cementing its position as a leader in Nigeria’s fintech scene.

The company’s success attracted significant investment. Okra raised a total of $16.5 million, starting with a $1 million pre-seed round from TLcom Capital in 2020, followed by a $3.5 million seed round in 2021 led by Susa Ventures and Accenture Ventures. An additional $12 million round in 2022, led by Base10 Partners, further fuelled its ambitions. These funds supported Okra’s mission to expand its open finance infrastructure across Nigeria and into beta testing in Kenya and South Africa.

In October 2024, Okra made a pivot by launching Nebula, a cloud infrastructure product aimed at addressing the skyrocketing costs of foreign cloud services like Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Microsoft Azure, which are priced in dollars. With Nigeria’s naira depreciation increasing operational costs for local businesses, Okra saw an opportunity to offer a cost-effective, naira-based alternative.

Nebula positioned Okra alongside other homegrown cloud providers like Nobus and Layer3, targeting businesses seeking to reduce reliance on expensive foreign infrastructure.

Fara Ashiru Jituboh explained the rationale behind the pivot: “One thing we realised as everybody was being impacted by forex, devaluation, and the general economic climate was that, outside our people costs, we were spending the majority of our earnings on infrastructure costs.” 

By offering cloud services in local currencies, Okra aimed to capture a share of Africa’s rapidly growing cloud computing market, projected to grow 25-30% annually. However, early feedback suggested that while some companies adopted Nebula, they were not using it for mission-critical services, creating uncertainty about long-term revenue.

Why Okra shut down

Despite having three years of runway left from its $16.5 million in funding, Okra’s leadership decided to wind down operations. Ashiru Jituboh emphasised that the decision was not driven by a funding crunch but by strategic and market challenges. 

The launch of Nebula, while innovative, faced significant hurdles. Competing against global giants like AWS and Google Cloud proved difficult, particularly due to high switching costs and concerns about operational reliability for businesses. Additionally, the shutdown of Nebula highlighted the complexities of local startups challenging established cloud providers in a market increasingly focused on data sovereignty.

The broader African fintech landscape also played a role. The ecosystem has seen a wave of startup shutdowns, including Copia, Gro Intelligence, Dash, and 54gene, as investors increasingly prioritise profitability over growth. Okra’s pivot to cloud services, while strategic, may have strained its resources and diluted its focus on open banking, where it had established expertise. Reports also indicate that Okra discontinued three of its original products, suggesting challenges in sustaining demand for its core offerings.

Meanwhile, in a rare move for African startups, Okra chose to return its remaining funds, estimated at $4 million to $5.5 million, to investors. Okra’s leadership declined to disclose the exact figure but confirmed that the company had spent roughly 60-75% of its $16.5 million, leaving a substantial balance after providing generous severance packages to employees. Older employees reportedly received up to six months’ salary, while newer staff received bonuses.

Ashiru Jituboh’s transparency about the shutdown and fund return underscores Okra’s commitment to ethical practices. “It was an incredible journey,” she said. “We built impactful technology, worked with some of the biggest brands across the continent, and helped pioneer open banking in Africa.”

The decision to return funds reflects a focus on maintaining investor trust, a critical factor in Africa’s evolving startup ecosystem.

Okra’s closure is a sobering moment for Africa’s fintech sector, which has seen record-breaking investments but also increasing scrutiny. In 2024, African startups recorded a funding dip from 2023, signalling a shift toward sustainable business models. Okra’s story highlights the challenges of balancing innovation with scalability in a competitive market. Its contributions to open banking, however, remain undeniable, having laid the groundwork for financial interoperability across Nigeria and beyond.

As the continent’s fintech revolution continues, Okra’s shutdown serves as a reminder of the need for resilience, adaptability, and clear paths to profitability. For now, the industry watches to see who will carry forward the mantle of open finance in Africa.