Grace Ashiru
Kippa, the Nigerian fintech startup, has officially announced its forthcoming discontinuation of its offline payment solution, KippaPay, effective from November 15, 2023. This strategic decision also entails the eventual departure of the core team responsible for managing this product, which will take place by December 2023. To support the affected employees, approximately 70% of the company’s workforce will be provided with severance packages and assistance in finding new employment opportunities.
CEO Kennedy Ekezie explained, “Our company’s choice is a result of our commitment to consolidating our profitable product portfolio. It is, however, regrettable that this means bidding farewell to the dedicated team behind KippaPay by the end of 2023. While this decision has not been without its challenges, we want to acknowledge the outstanding contributions of this team and the positive impact that KippaPay has had on our merchant network.”
Following Nigeria’s currency devaluation in June 2023, the naira’s value has sharply declined. This depreciation has led to increased operational expenses for businesses relying on imports, including Kippa, which imports its point-of-sale machines. Consequently, the company is grappling with strained resources, extending its breakeven period by 2.5%, as reported by Ekezie.
As the company approaches its eventual closure, it has committed to resolving any outstanding payments to its merchants. Kippa, established in 2020, serves as a bookkeeping solution provider for over 500,000 small businesses in Nigeria. In April 2022, Kippa introduced KippaPay, a platform enabling customers to generate invoices and facilitate payments. Moreover, in September 2022, the company secured $8.4 million in funding from prominent investors such as Goodwater Capital, TEN13 VC, Rocketship VC, Saison Capital, Crestone VC, VentureSouq, Horizon Partners, and Vibe Capital.
“At the launch event, Kippa Payments co-founder and CTO Jephtah Chidozie-Uche stated that the introduction of Kippa Payments will offer us a greater understanding of our customers by analyzing transactional data. This enhanced understanding will empower us to gradually introduce more personalized and custom-tailored products within the Kippa ecosystem, complementing our existing solutions,” expressed Chidozie-Uche.
