A total of ₦77.5 million was awarded to 10 winners of the Fourth Edition of the Zenith Tech Fair, hackathon competition, which saw participation from over 1,700 contestants.
The Tech Fair, themed “Future Forward 4.0: Embedded Finance, Cybersecurity & Growth Imperatives – The Impact of AI”, ended on Thursday, at the Eko Convention Centre, Lagos.
The hackathon’s grand prize of ₦25 million went to JumpnPass, a self-checkout technology startup transforming retail in Africa.
The startup will also undergo a six-week mentorship program from December 2024 to February 2025 to aid its growth.
The first runner-up, CreditChek, a credit verification service using AI and open banking, won ₦20 million. Salad Africa, offering seamless credit product integration for digital platforms, emerged as the second runner-up with ₦15 million. Other finalists, including Regxta, CashAfrica, Middleman, Messenger, Pocketfood, Famasi Africa, and Kitovu, received ₦2.5 million each.
In her address, the Group Managing Director/CEO of Zenith Bank, Dame (Dr.) Adaora Umeoji, expressed gratitude to the bank’s Founder and Chairman, Dr. Jim Ovia, for creating the Tech Fair initiative.
“This event empowers young fertile minds. We aim to nurture innovators like Bill Gates and Elon Musk from these hackathons,” she said. “Supporting startups not only drives innovation but also creates employment opportunities for our youth.”
She also emphasized the importance of innovation in business, stating, “Innovation should be a top priority. Companies that fail to innovate risk being displaced.”
The event included the launch of Zenith Bank’s digital wallet, EazyByZenith, which supports the bank’s retail and financial inclusion strategy. Other highlights included presentations on Artificial Intelligence, Cybersecurity, and Financial Intelligence by global experts, such as Robin Speculand and Danilo McGarry.
The panel discussion, hosted by Wole Odeyele of Microsoft, featured industry leaders, including Funke Opeke, CEO of MainOne, and Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, Director General of NITDA.
The Zenith Bank startup pitch competition and incubation program aims to support high-potential Nigerian startups in Embedded Finance, Cybersecurity, HealthTech, and more, providing resources to scale their businesses.
