Based in Nigeria and the UK, Kuda is joining tech companies in Africa that are whipping up their workforces.
First sources told TechCrunch that the layoffs, confirmed by email at Cuda, were less than 5% of the 450-strong workforce, or about 23 people.
The company numbers are small compared to the number of layoffs that have occurred in Africa’s tech ecosystem over the past few months, particularly from startups that have raised large amounts of capital in the past year or two. For example, Swvl fired 400; wave, approximately 300; 54 Jin, 95; and Vezeeta, 50. However, the event speaks of the different endeavors startups – including soonicorns and unicorns – are doing. Although the company began hiring for designers in July, it’s not entirely surprising in the case of the Cuda. At last month’s town hall meeting, Cudda said reducing roles and laying off redundant staff to cut costs and airport expansion were among the topics discussed in light of current macroeconomic trends, sources said.
Meanwhile, Digital Bank, which offers zero-to-low fees on cards, account maintenance and transfers and is one of Africa’s Sunicorns, raised $55 million last August — money it plans to use not only to double down on new services. It was valued at $500 million in a Series B round – for Nigeria, but also to set up the startup in additional countries on the continent such as Ghana and Uganda.
The company has raised a total of over $90 million from investors like Valar Ventures and Target Global and plans to expand outside of Africa to Pakistan. It recently hired Pavel Krystolubov, former Tinkoff executive global chief executive officer, and Elena Lavezzi, former Revolut executive chief strategy officer in Europe, to oversee efforts in this regard and also to grow its customer base of more than 4 million.
As Kuda positions itself for pan-African and global expansion in an uncertain capital environment, it cites recent cuts to its workforce as part of strategic moves for sustainable growth. “Cuda is currently undergoing some strategic changes to better serve its customers and make financial services accessible, affordable and relevant to all Africans,” the four-year-old company said, citing reasons for the layoffs.
Cuda said in an email that layoffs have affected various departments within the company. Per sources, this includes development, marketing and production departments.
