Economy
Juicyway Raises $3m for Affordable Cross-Border Payments
By Adedapo Adesanya
Payment startup using stablecoin technology to transform cross-border payments, Juicyway, has launched out of stealth mode and announced a $3 million pre-seed to transform payments by expanding its team, advancing its technology, and eventual entry into new markets.
The round was led by P1 Ventures, with participation from Ventures Platform, Future Africa, Magic Fund, Andrew Alli, Gbenga Oyebode, Tunde Folawiyo, Microtraction, and others.
Founded in 2021 by Mr Ife Johnson and Mr Justin Ziegler, Juicyway enables individuals and businesses to send, receive, and process payments globally. The platform supports fiat currencies like the Nigerian Naira (NGN), US Dollar (USD), and Canadian Dollar (CAD), as well as cryptocurrency transactions.
As the creators of Nigeria’s price discovery engine, Naira Rates, Juicyway facilitates remittances and provides access to FX through various payment channels. It offers multicurrency accounts and access to a liquidity pool for local and international payments at competitive rates.
Licensed in Nigeria, Canada, the USA, and the UK, Juicyway has processed $1.3 billion across 25,000 transactions, and 4,000 customers, Juicyway has proven its value and efficiency. Trusted by prominent brands like Bolt, IHS, Piggyvest, Mocoh SA, Bamboo, and Afriex, the company also partners with Access Bank for remittance services.
Juciyway will be seeking to address high remittance fees by leveraging stablecoin technology to enable fast, affordable global money transfers with 24/7 execution and settlement.
According to a statement, Juicyway wants to simplify money movement while ensuring market-driven pricing in Africa where remittance fees average 13 per cent on $200 transfers as of Q4 2023.
In 2023 alone, Africa received an estimated $90.2 billion in remittances, accounting for 5.2 per cent of GDP and nearly double the amount of overseas aid.
Through its web and mobile apps and APIs, it will display real-time rates based on what other users are willing to pay.
The platform will also create a liquid ecosystem, lower remittance costs, and empower users to trade confidently, allowing greater financial inclusion.
Speaking on the round, Mr Johnson said, “Africa contributes less than 1% to the $5 trillion global currency market, partly because there’s no liquidity for intra-African currency pairs. The old systems weren’t built to support this. Over the next three years, we want to be the platform where Nigerians and eventually the whole of Africa, and those doing business on the continent can easily convert African currencies to local ones and back.
“Our ultimate goal is to unlock liquidity for African currency pairs that currently have none. Stablecoin technology and our network model make this vision achievable by enabling fast and efficient money movement. Without it, we’d still be in pursuit of this goal, but it would be far harder to achieve.”
Also commenting on the fundraise, Mr Justin Ziegler Co-Founder and COO of Juicyway stated, “Juicyway’s goal is to build uninterrupted, cost-effective cross-border infrastructure that enables Africa to participate in the global economy on equal footing.
“Our growth in a short period of time reflects the underlying demand for better global payments. We’re proud to offer a solution that eliminates the need for businesses and individuals to juggle multiple platforms to manage their financial needs. This investment represents a milestone for our company, and we are grateful for the trust and commitment from our investors”.
The funding will drive Juicyway’s growth by supporting team expansion, technological advancements, and entry into new markets. The round includes the addition of Joshua Wasserman, a compliance and regulatory expert with experience at the U.S. Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and a key leader in building compliance for Cash App.
Juicyway also welcomes Mr Idris Ibrahim, CRO of Juicyway, Mr Ridwan Otun, formerly with Bamboo and Smart Pension, and Mr Ukeoma Chukundah, ex-Klarna and Deimos, as key members of its engineering team.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies (OPEC+) agreed to raise its oil output quotas by 206,000 barrels per day for May.
Eight members of OPEC+, comprising Saudi Arabia, Russia, Iraq, the UAE, Kuwait, Kazakhstan, Algeria, and Oman, agreed to the increase in May quota at a virtual meeting on Sunday, OPEC+ said in a statement.
However, the rise will be in theory, as its key members are unable to raise production due to the US-Israeli war with Iran, which has affected production.
The war has effectively shut the Strait of Hormuz, the world’s most important oil route, since the end of February and cut exports from some OPEC+ members, including Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Kuwait and Iraq. These are the only countries in the group which were able to significantly raise production even before the conflict began.
Besides the disruptions affecting Gulf members, others, such as Russia, are unable to increase output due to Western sanctions and damage to infrastructure inflicted during the war with Ukraine. For Nigeria, even as Africa’s largest producer, it has not been able to keep production quotas steady.
The OPEC+ quota increase of 206,000 barrels per day represents less than 2 per cent of the supply disrupted by the Hormuz closure, but it signals readiness to raise output once the waterway reopens.
Also meeting on Sunday, a separate OPEC+ panel called the Joint Ministerial Monitoring Committee (JMMC), expressed concern about attacks on energy assets, saying they were expensive and time-consuming to repair and so have an impact on supply.
May’s OPEC+ increase is the same as the eight members had agreed for April at their last meeting held on March 1, just as the war began to disrupt oil flows.
A month later, the largest oil supply disruption on record is estimated to have removed as many as 12 to 15 million barrels per day or up to 15 per cent of global supply.
The eight OPEC+ members have raised production quotas by about 2.9 million barrels per day from April 2025 through December 2025, before pausing increases for January to March 2026. The sub-group holds its next meeting on May 3.
Market analysts have warned that oil prices could hit $150 per barrel if the closure of the strait is prolonged and continues, due to damage to energy assets across the critical Middle East region.
As of the time of this report, Brent crude is trading at $108 per barrel, below the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude at $109 per barrel.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Workers at Seplat Energy will resume work after a strike action that impacted production was called off by the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) over the weekend, with the company issuing written commitments on pay rises.
Top employees began an indefinite strike last Friday as talks over a collective bargaining agreement and staff welfare issues broke down. The action came at a time when Nigeria is seeking to maximise production amid rising global oil prices.
According to Reuters, in an April 4 letter to the chief executive of Seplat Nigeria, Mr Roger Brown, PENGASSAN said it had directed members at the local energy firm to immediately suspend industrial action after negotiations resumed with the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited. Other less-skilled workers are covered by the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and did not partake in the strike with PENGASSAN.
The union said talks on a 2026 collective bargaining agreement would continue, with the aim of concluding outstanding issues by April 13. However, according to the publication, the union did not disclose more details about its financial demands.
“We can confirm that the union has suspended its notice of industrial action to allow negotiations to conclude on outstanding items within an agreed framework,” Seplat spokesperson, Mr Ogechukwu Udeagha, said, adding that “operations are recommencing at our various locations.”
Seplat Energy’s group production averaged 131,506 barrels of oil equivalent per day in 2025, according to its latest audited results. That is the equivalent of around 7 per cent–9 per cent of Nigeria’s total liquids production.
The company expects output to rise to 155,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day, making any sustained disruption particularly sensitive for Nigeria’s supply outlook. This comes as it seeks to scale production while remaining a major supplier of gas to Nigeria’s domestic power market.
With the company’s output expected to rise, any prolonged disruption would have significantly impacted Nigeria’s oil supply and fiscal outlook.
By Dipo Olowookere
The weekly turnover of the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited shrank by 27.70 per cent or 1.094 billion equities, partly due to the inability of market participants to trade last Friday as a result of the Good Friday public holiday declared by the federal government.
In the week, investors bought and sold 2.856 billion equities worth N113.597 billion in 215,287 deals versus the 3.950 billion equities valued at N201.312 billion transacted in 359,642 deals in the preceding week.
The activity chart was led by the financial services industry with 1.811 billion shares valued at N61.901 billion in 86,818 deals, contributing 63.41 per cent and 54.49 per cent to the total trading volume and value, respectively.
The services sector traded 299.895 million stocks worth N2.966 billion in 13,797 deals, and the ICT segment exchanged 183.233 million equities for N14.654 billion in 25,287 deals.
Wema Bank, Access Holdings, and Secure Electronic Technology accounted for 734.659 million shares worth N14.134 billion in 12,319 deals, contributing 25.72 per cent and 12.44 per cent to the total trading volume and value apiece.
Data from the NGX said 29 stocks gained weight versus 47 stocks of the previous week, as 57 shares lost weight versus 45 shares in the preceding week, while 62 equities closed flat versus 56 equities a week earlier.
Multiverse led the gainers’ chart after it gained 20.66 per cent to trade at N20.15, UPDC REIT appreciated by 15.49 per cent to N8.20, International Energy Insurance chalked up 12.54 per cent to quote at N3.32, Austin Laz grew by 10.47 per cent to N4.43, and Unilever Nigeria rose by 10.00 per cent to N103.40.
Conversely, Secure Electronic Technology topped the losers’ table after it lost 21.54 per cent to close at N1.02, John Holt declined by 18.47 per cent to N15.45, May and Baker depreciated by 16.57 per cent to N35.00, Aluminium Extrusion moderated by 16.27 per cent to N10.55, and Legend Internet slipped by 16.00 per cent to N6.30.
Business Post reports that the All-Share Index (ASI) was up by 0.39 per cent to 201,698,89 points, and the market capitalisation rose by 0.65 per cent to N129.806 trillion.
In the same vein, all other indices finished higher apart from the main board, insurance, MERI Value, consumer goods, industrial goods and growth indices, which went down by 0.29 per cent, 4.25 per cent, 0.36 per cent, 1.74 per cent, 0.24 per cent, and 0.06 per cent, respectively, while the sovereign bond index closed flat.
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