According to a statement viewed by TechCabal, investors in the Nigerian stock investment app Risevest have suggested that the company’s founder and CEO, Eke Eleanya Urum, resign from his position due to ongoing investigations into allegations of sexual and non-sexual wrongdoing.
“A part of the statement reads: allegations of sexual and non-sexual impropriety from someone who can reasonably expect to know of such, investors of Risevest have asked Eke Urum to step aside.” In August 2021, the Nigerian central bank froze the accounts of four fintech startups, including Risevest. In August 2021, the Nigerian central bank froze the accounts of Risevest and three other fintech startups. At the time, Risevest’s Telegram learning community had more than 12,000 users. This was supposedly done to prevent the naira from depreciating against the dollar. The corporation reversed the order in October, two months later.
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In his stead, Tony Odiba, the organization’s current director of operations, will also take over as interim CEO. Otasowie Evbuomwan will oversee its US operations. Investors have promised to help them as they take on their new roles as a result of the current investigation. Also, they have reassured the people who have a stake in the company that depositors’ money is safe because the current investigation has nothing to do with financial problems. Microtraction, the company’s investor, asked OriOri to leave in August 2021 because he was said to have underpaid and not paid freelance software developers and insulted and undermined them over differences.
After TechCabal looked into the operations of the founder and CEO of the payroll management startup Bento Africa, the board of directors of the company decided to remove Ebunoluwa Okunbanjo from running the business earlier this year. Around the time Okunbanjo’s story came out, Eke was accused of sexual harassment, which he strongly denied in public.
“There’s a part of me that’s wondering if it’s the same situation coming up again. “I don’t know whether it’s the same person or a new person,” Eke said. But my response to that situation was very public. It was a lie, and it wasn’t someone who worked with me at Rise; it was someone I hired to do some personal research.
During the chat with TechCabal, Eke swore that he wouldn’t try to guess how the probe would turn out. Tomi Davies (TD) of TVC Labs is in charge of the group of people who are looking into the claims. Odunoluwa Longe of TLP Advisory is the legal counsel, and Toun Tunde-Anjous of The People Practice is the people and culture adviser. The rest of the company’s statement says, “Risevest’s investors strongly oppose any kind of harassment or wrongdoing and will take extensive steps to look into all claims.” “To this end, the panel is allowing some time for former employees of Risevest to share information that may assist with the investigation while simultaneously speaking with current employees of Risevest.”
It’s impressive that Risevest upholds morality and integrity, as shown in the action taken towards the sexual and non-sexual misconduct of their CEO. Only time will tell what the future holds for Mr. Eke Eleanya Urum.