">
TechMoran
  • About Us
  • Deals
  • Jobs
  • Motoring
    • Money
  • Pitch Your Startup
  • Submit Your Post
  • Freelance Gigs
  • Travel
  • Men’s Corner
  • Dating
Thursday, January 21, 2021
  • Startups
  • Reviews
  • Insider
    • Obituaries
  • Business
  • Women
  • Blockchain
  • Columnists
  • Hacks & Facts
    • How To
  • Editions
    • US Edition
    • India Edition
    • MENA Edition
    • Asia Edition
    • Europe Edition
    • International Edition
No Result
View All Result
TechMoran
">
Home Business

Cellulant Group CEO Ken Njoroge to step down in June

Milcah Lukhanyu by Milcah Lukhanyu
6 days ago
in Business, Leadership, People, Startups
11 min read
0

Cellulant Group co-founder and Group CEO Ken Njoroge is set to step down in June 2021 and leave the firm in December 2021 after 18 years at the helm.

As a Group CEO running Cellulant in over 38 markets, Ken is jumping off the lion willingly and honorably. His leaving is not related to the departure of the Nigerian co-founder and CEO late last year.

According to Njoroge, “After 18 years of running Cellulant, I have decided that 2021 will be my last year as (Group) CEO. In August 2020, we suffered a major internal crisis that saw my co-founder exit the business. It wasn’t the crisis, but the process that followed, which gifted me the clarity.”

Ken adds that he also wants to spend time with his family, which has been part of the journey for the last sixteen years.

Ken’s friend and co-founder Bolaji became the Co-CEO of Cellulant in 2017, and was also the CEO of Cellulant Nigeria perhaps Cellulant’s biggest market. Abolaji’s experience in the agriculture sector saw him become the defacto head of Agrikore, a blockchain-powered smart contract-system for the agriculture value chain launched in September 2019 but now suspended. With his friend out, Ken is exposed and the lion is thirsty for more, he had to do something about it. Quit, remain relevant, reconnect with his old friends, and maybe start over.

“My co-founder and I found a way to get close to the cub, speak to it and understand it. Before long, we found ourselves on the back of the cub, doing the thing that made life worth living- riding the Lion, creating and changing the world we saw. For me, Cellulant was an ode to the belief that Africa could build great things. To create a solution on this continent, by Africans and for Africans, even in a field as westernised as technology was the dream we committed our lives to. We ate, slept and breathed nothing else. Every day, we woke up and fed this cub… until it was a cub no longer,” Ken wrote.

READ  Ghana and 4 other countries in Sub-Saharan Africa provide better personal safety & security than the BRIC countries

Ken also says that COVID-19 gave him the opportunity to see beyond and with deep reflection, gave him the chance to pause, reflect and look into the future.

Related posts

Cheerful young businessman in round spectacles and formal wear, checks newsfeed on modern smart phone, connected to wireless internet, has happy look as recieves positive news from colleagues

TransUnion partners SA’s financial marketplace, Fincheck, to make the credit application process easier and less frustrating

January 20, 2021
0

Autochek opens Accra office to bolster its customer acquisition efforts

January 20, 2021
0

Ghana’s Zeepay raises $940 000 seed capital from GOODsoil VC for expansion

January 20, 2021
0

Nigeria’s uLesson raises $7.5m series A for expansion into Eastern & Southern Africa

January 19, 2021
0

“At some point in the life of every founder, the Lion outgrows you, and you find yourself on top of a beast. It walks and talks familiar, but at the same time, it is a whole different being. At that point, the Lion will send you some signs telling you this is where you jump off.  One of the things always going through your mind while riding the Lion is that if you jump off too soon, it loses its way; yet it will swallow you whole if you hang on too long,” he said.

Conceptualized in 2001 and founded in 2014 by Kenyan Ken Njoroge and Nigerian Ken Bolaji, Cellulant is a payment platform infrastructure service provider with operations in Kenya, Nigeria, Zambia, Ghana, Zimbabwe, Tanzania, Uganda, Botswana, Mozambique, Malawi and Rwanda.

The firm’s various digital platforms connect buyers, sellers and other stakeholders in the entire value chain saw it raise $47.5m to help it scale its digital payment services and blockchain-based service Agrikore to more users in Africa.

READ  Here are the 50 Semi- Finalists for PIVOT East 2016

Reaching over 40 million people across 11 African countries, Cellulant needed growth partners to reach even more users and that’s why it sold a $47.5m stake to the Rise Fund, an impact investing fund managed by growth equity platform TPG Growth, to broaden its reach and extend its payments ecosystem across the continent.

The Rise Fund invested alongside Endeavor Catalyst and Satya Capital to bolster growth for its easy-to-access digital payment solutions, interoperable financial services, and mobile banking solutions to help the unbanked open accounts, cut fees, and save for the future, as well as helping farmers and small and medium-sized business owners expand their reach through improved financial services. 

According to Yemi Lalude, Managing Partner for TPG in Africa, during the raise, “Cellulant occupies a unique position in the fintech ecosystem in Africa, with the potential to offer increased access, savings, and income to tens of millions of users across the continent. As more and more smartphones come online across Africa, Cellulant makes it easy for customers to increase their incomes.”

The Rise Fund, Satya Capital and Endeavor Catalyst joined Cellulant’s existing shareholders Velocity Capital Private Equity, Progression Capital Africa Limited and TBL Mirror Fund.

Njoroge says the from 2014 to 2018, Cellulant went through a phase where it needed dreamers as well as a fierce ambition. It required him to go out on the road and sell that dream to investors worldwide until finally, the money came in. However, “This phase necessitated an expansion of the dream and by extension, an expansion of the den,” said Njoroge. As they opened the doors to investors, Cellulant also opened its den for more lions.

READ  Liquid Telecom gets nod to acquire Neotel for ZAR 6.55 billion

Ken’s next journey is to nurture, build and grow a thousand more lion riders who can run faster, better, and with fewer mistakes.

Ken will transition from his role as the CEO by the end of June, and spend the rest of the year supporting all the teams and the new leader in the transition. He will remain a shareholder and director on the board.

As a shareholder and director on the board, Ken will be part of the boardroom at Cellulant with its other shareholders and investors to direct and inspire Cellulant’s talented management team.

Readers 2,212

Share

  • Click to share on Telegram (Opens in new window)
  • More
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)
  • Click to print (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window)

Like this:

Like Loading...

Related

Milcah Lukhanyu

Milcah Lukhanyu

Milcah Lukhanyu covers daily news briefs at TechMoran. She is the person who will probably read your press release and get the story out of it or totally trash it. Send tips to [email protected]

Related Posts

Cheerful young businessman in round spectacles and formal wear, checks newsfeed on modern smart phone, connected to wireless internet, has happy look as recieves positive news from colleagues
Startups

TransUnion partners SA’s financial marketplace, Fincheck, to make the credit application process easier and less frustrating

January 20, 2021
0
Startups

Autochek opens Accra office to bolster its customer acquisition efforts

January 20, 2021
0
Startups

Ghana’s Zeepay raises $940 000 seed capital from GOODsoil VC for expansion

January 20, 2021
0
Education

Nigeria’s uLesson raises $7.5m series A for expansion into Eastern & Southern Africa

January 19, 2021
0
Business

Mastercard, Unilever & KCB Bank to pump over $150,000 into SMEs in Kenya via their Jaza Duka program

January 18, 2021
0
Startups

This VC firm is Calling for Changes to Cut-and-paste VC Strategy In Africa

January 18, 2021
0
Startups

Tizeti rolls out high-speed 4G LTE in Edo with N4000/month broadband service

January 18, 2021
0
Startups

Copia Kenya hosts MIT Global Entrepreneurship Lab project 

January 18, 2021
0

https://bit.ly/2VOxuoBhttps://bit.ly/2VOxuoBhttps://bit.ly/2VOxuoB
ADVERTISEMENT

Join our Mailing List

Loading

Recent Posts

Why Michelle Obama Is Trending On Twitter

January 20, 2021
Cheerful young businessman in round spectacles and formal wear, checks newsfeed on modern smart phone, connected to wireless internet, has happy look as recieves positive news from colleagues

TransUnion partners SA’s financial marketplace, Fincheck, to make the credit application process easier and less frustrating

January 20, 2021

Sophos Named Common Vulnerability and Exposure Numbering Authority 

January 20, 2021

Your Ultimate SEO Audit Checklist for 2021

January 20, 2021

Safaricom Will Allegedly Allow The National Intelligence To Illegally Forward Your Calls

January 20, 2021
">
">

Follow Us

">

There are many sites out there focused on blowing off some steam, from funny entertainment to thrilling experiences like playing online, in some cases online gaming could grant you the chance to win extra money. We came across rocketpot.io while browsing for a good btc casino online and it left us a very good impression with their wide variety of games and crypto offering.

Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here: Cookie Policy

© 2019 Moran Media Group - All rights reserved TechMoran.

No Result
View All Result
  • Startups
  • Reviews
  • Insider
    • Obituaries
  • Business
  • Women
  • Blockchain
  • Columnists
  • Hacks & Facts
    • How To
  • Editions
    • US Edition
    • India Edition
    • MENA Edition
    • Asia Edition
    • Europe Edition
    • International Edition

© 2019 Moran Media Group - All rights reserved TechMoran.

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password? Sign Up

Fill the forms bellow to register

All fields are required. Log In

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
This website uses cookies. By continuing to use this website you are giving consent to cookies being used. Visit our Privacy and Cookie Policy.
%d bloggers like this: