Not long ago, building a Nigerian startup was straightforward: create something people want, secure investment, and scale with global tools like AWS, Slack, and top hires from abroad. With plenty of funding, the numbers made sense. But since 2023, the weakening naira has turned dollar-priced essentials into existential threats. Local revenue, no matter how fast it grows, barely registers in USD, while costs for cloud services, software, and foreign talent keep soaring.
Recently, we gathered a group of founders to discuss this dollarisation crisis and how to adapt. Deji Olowe, founder of LendSqr and chairman at Paystack (now Stripe-owned), shared practical strategies in a fireside chat with TechCabal’s Fuad Lawal. Olowe’s key message: you don’t always need the priciest, dollar-denominated tools to get the job done. Why pay $7 per user for Slack when open-source alternatives work? Do you really need all that cloud storage?
Olowe also challenged the habit of hiring expensive foreign executives, arguing that local talent, when properly trained, delivers better value and strengthens the ecosystem. Banks have long invested in local talent—why shouldn’t startups?
The founders present were already making changes: switching to local or open-source alternatives, auditing every dollar-based subscription, and even considering on-premise solutions to control costs. This tough environment is forcing startups back to first principles: focus on what truly creates value and cut expensive habits.
Despite the challenges, this squeeze is driving a new wave of efficiency and innovation. Meanwhile, our partner CloudPlexo, and AWS provider, is offering free AI strategy consultations to tech startups. If you’re looking for ways to optimise, it’s worth a chat. Email us, and we’ll connect you.
