Ezra Olubi, Co-founder and Chief Technology Officer of the Stripe-owned Nigerian payments company Paystack, has been suspended following an allegation of sexual misconduct involving a subordinate.
The controversy began on Wednesday after personal complaints were published on social media by an individual who had previously been in a relationship with Olubi. The social media post brought renewed attention to a series of disturbing tweets Olubi posted between 2009 and 2013, many of which contained sexually suggestive content involving colleagues and minors.
These resurfaced posts reignited a public debate over personal conduct, accountability, and the long-term impact of old social media activity, prompting Olubi to deactivate his X account.
The resurfaced tweets attracted widespread condemnation, including one post that read: “I judge my female friends by the sound of their pee make. Thanks to the audio in my bathroom,” and another that stated: “Save water. Take a bath with your neighbour’s daughter.” A particularly troubling tweet from May 23, 2011, read: “Monday will be more fun with an ‘a’ in it. Touch a coworker today. Inappropriately.” According to a Friday report by TechCabal, Paystack confirmed it has opened a formal probe into the entire matter.
Confirming the situation, Paystack released a statement to TechCabal: “Paystack is aware of the allegations involving our Co-founder, Ezra Olubi. We take matters of this nature extremely seriously. Effective immediately, Ezra has been suspended from all duties and responsibilities pending the outcome of a formal investigation.” The company added that it would refrain from making any further comments to “protect the integrity of the process” and out of “respect for the individuals involved.”
Paystack, founded in 2015 by Ezra Olubi (who was pivotal in building the technology architecture) and Shola Akinlade, rapidly became a leading Nigerian fintech, providing payment infrastructure across Africa. The firm was the first Nigerian startup accepted into the prestigious Y Combinator accelerator in 2016. Its success culminated in a high-profile acquisition by global payments giant Stripe in 2020 for over US$200 million, one of Nigeria’s largest fintech exits.
