By Modupe Gbadeyanka
Some young Nigerian entrepreneurs recently pitched their business ideas to five judges for a chance to win a grant offered by a notable retail lender in the country, Keystone Bank Limited.
The financial institution partnered with Kleos Advisory to organise a specialised incubator programme known as the Keystone Start-up Advantage Programme (KSA) with offerings to address the needs of startup businesses.
The initiative started in January 2022 and gave 30 micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) and startups the opportunity to go through a three-month investor readiness programme designed to have groups as well as one-on-one mentoring and coaching sessions.
At the end of the incubator period, three successful participants won a N3 million grant each to support their business operations.
The winners emerged at a ‘Demo Day’ held on Friday, August 5, 2022, at Keystone Bank’s head office in Lagos. The three successful SMEs/start-ups were XDC Manufacturing owned by Oluwatobi Oyetimein, Natal Cares owned by Uche Udekwe and Kahdsole Designs owned by Chioma Ukpabi.
Keystone Bank, which explained that this programme was in furtherance of its commitment to tackle unemployment and encourage entrepreneurs in Nigeria, noted that the platform created an opportunity for innovative SMEs and tech start-ups to connect with potential investors, tech thought leaders and hear their success stories first-hand, vis-a-vis the knowledge and skills needed to fast-track their businesses to the next growth phase.
The Divisional Head of Retail, SME and Value Chain at the bank, Mr Anayo Nwosu, said he was delighted that young Nigerian entrepreneurs were thinking outside the box to provide innovations and solutions to prevalent issues in the country.
He added that all the participants were winners as they all had innovative products and services for the market, disclosing further that the vision of the bank was to impact 200 startups annually and up to 1,000 startups in the next 5 years through the Keystone Start-up Advantage Programme.
“As you know, capacity building remains key for the growth and development of SMEs, because SMEs in every part of the world are the livewire of the economy.
“That is why as a bank, we shall continue to lend our support towards the growth of the sector,” he said.
