EXCLUSIVE: DUKE EKEZIE, COFOUNDER OF KIPPA, DEPARTS FOLLOWING AGENCY BANKING SHUTDOWN, EMBARKS ON NEW VENTURE

Duke Ekezie, co-founder, and President of Kippa, a fintech startup backed by Target Global, has parted ways with the company following the closure of Kippa Pay, the agency banking product he oversaw.

Notably absent from the company’s Slack channel for months, Duke initially refrained from confirming or denying his departure when approached by TechCabal in December 2023. However, he has now officially acknowledged his exit and is involved in a new undisclosed venture.

Despite leaving his role, Duke maintains a stake in Kippa and continues to offer advisory services to Kennedy Ekezie, his brother and co-founder. He refrained from commenting on the 2022 departure of Uche Jepthat, the CTO and third co-founder of Kippa, who left two months after the startup raised $8.2 million in a second funding round.

Duke clarified that, in the last quarter of 2023, Kippa decided to exit the unprofitable agency banking business, leading to the closure of Kippa Pay and the layoff of 40 employees. Duke handed over day-to-day operations to Kennedy and disclosed that they are individually working on solving different problems identified through discussions with SMEs and large businesses.

While Duke did not disclose details about his new venture, Kippa has pivoted to edtech, as reported by TechCabal. The company now focuses on an AI-powered platform that creates and delivers courses via messaging apps.

Kippa, initially conceived as a finance management platform after the founders spent time supporting TikTok’s expansion into Africa, had raised approximately $11.6 million across two funding rounds from notable VC firms and angel investors.

Source: TechCabal

Image Source: TechCabal