The Nigerian technology ecosystem is facing one of its most destabilising reputational crises to date. At the centre is Ezra Olubi, co-founder and Chief Technology Officer of Paystack, a company long regarded as a symbol of African innovation, discipline, and global standard execution. Olubi, who received the national honour of Officer of the Order of the Niger (OON) from President Muhammadu Buhari in 2022, abruptly deleted his Twitter account at 7:50 PM on Thursday, 13 November 2025. The move appears to be a calculated attempt to erase a mounting digital trail that has triggered widespread outrage, institutional scrutiny, and a reckoning inside the broader fintech industry.
This unfolding scandal has forced uncomfortable questions to the surface. The relationship between personal conduct and corporate leadership, the responsibility expected of founders in high-growth technology companies, and the collision between national recognition and private behaviour. It has also intensified pressure on Paystack and its parent company, Stripe, both of which now face the delicate task of protecting organisational stability while addressing a situation that threatens investor confidence, stakeholder trust, and the hard-won credibility of West Africa’s fintech sector.
What began as a series of online revelations has grown into a full-scale crisis with consequences that extend far beyond one individual. The impact is now reaching into boardrooms, regulatory conversations, and the global perception of Nigerian technology leadership.
The Catalyst: Amaka Obae’s Mind Bare All Twitter Space
The scandal broke into the open on Tuesday, 12 November 2025, after a viral Twitter Space hosted by Amaka “Max” Odeluga, a Nigerian American commentator and Vice President at the global investment firm Wellington Management. Known online by the moniker MakiSpoke, Odeluga has built a reputation for sharp digital commentary and unapologetic transparency. In the widely streamed session, she revealed that she had recently married her female partner in the United States, a declaration that framed her as forthright and unafraid of public scrutiny before she turned to the events that ignited the controversy.
Over the course of the emotionally intense broadcast, which drew thousands of listeners in real time, Odeluga detailed her involvement in a polycule with Olubi and unpacked the dynamics of their relationship. She acknowledged borrowing 55,000 dollars from him, but her most serious claims focused on what she described as a sustained pattern of personal and professional misconduct.
The response was immediately polarised. Some listeners challenged the strength of her evidence, pointing particularly to her use of large language model analysis to infer connections, including a burner account she linked to Olubi. Others argued that her disclosures were consistent, specific, and indicative of behaviour that had long gone unexamined because of Olubi’s status within the tech ecosystem.
However, these doubts were quickly overshadowed and nullified by the public’s decision to investigate Olubi’s own digital history. Users immediately began archiving and circulating Olubi’s old, offensive tweets, making his own words his ultimate downfall, and confirming a pattern of profoundly poor judgment that transcended the context of his relationship with Obae.
The confirmed allegations against the Paystack CTO included:
- Sexual Misconduct with a Subordinate: Engaging in sexual relationships with employees under his professional authority, a critical breach of corporate ethics and power dynamics.
- Systemic Misogyny: A pervasive pattern of demeaning attitudes and actions toward women.
- Contempt for the Underprivileged: Routinely talking down on domestic workers and individuals he perceived as intellectually inferior, revealing a deeply condescending class bias that contradicts the inclusive mission of the tech sector.
The OON Paradox and Olubi’s Net Worth
The ethical failure is magnified by Olubi’s immense personal and national stature. Olubi’s financial success is estimated to have given him a net worth of around $40 million, largely stemming from the Stripe acquisition.
Furthermore, the revelation of Olubi’s conduct is particularly jarring given his standing as a recipient of a national honour. The Officer of the Order of the Niger (OON) is awarded to individuals who have rendered services to the nation in a manner worthy of recognition. The surfacing of his old tweets, which detail explicit support for workplace sexual harassment, sexual depravity, and language suggestive of pedophilia, presents a severe moral contradiction to the dignity of a national award.
The Stripe Association: A Global Governance Crisis
The scandal immediately became a global issue because of Paystack’s acquisition by Stripe in October 2020. As a co-founder and CTO, Ezra Olubi is a key executive and board member of the Stripe-owned Paystack. His continued presence and ethical conduct are intrinsically tied to the reputation and stability of both Paystack and Stripe. The nature of the misconduct exposes the global corporation to severe reputational damage and legal liability. Olubi’s actions have effectively turned a local ethical failure into a major governance crisis for an American financial powerhouse.
A Disturbing Digital History: Verbatim Tweets
The old tweets, some dating back to 2009, revealed Olubi’s own words confirming a history of sexual depravity, bestiality, and language suggesting pedophilic tendencies. These posts are now being used as evidence of a profound lack of ethical judgment.
| Date | Time | Tweet Content | Alleged Offense(s) |
| 05/12/10 | N/A | “My date last nite called me a paedophile! I told her that was an awfully big word for a 12 year old. /via @Roadfilm” | Pedophilia, Sexualizing Minors |
| 5/23/11 | 12:58 AM | “Monday will be more fun with an ‘a’ in it. Touch a coworker today. Inappropriately.” | Workplace Sexual Harassment |
| 06/05/2011 | 00:01 | “I have a touching relationship with my cousin. Can’t wait to get to third base.” | Incest |
| 09/02/2011 | N/A | “My pee stream is split in two. Is this a sign of an STD? Can you contract one if the only thing you’ve had sex with in months in months is your cat?” | Bestiality |
| 19/11/2012 | 22:31 | “I had been deprived of watching sexy 16 year olds with exaggerated breasts and skimpy skirts on screen legally till I discovered anime.” | Sexualizing Minors |
The Ripple Effect: Impact on the Nigerian Tech Ecosystem
This scandal deals a heavy blow to the reputation of the vibrant Nigerian tech ecosystem.
- Reputational Damage: The exposure of a national honouree and a co-founder of Nigeria’s biggest tech success story for deep ethical rot introduces a perception of governance and character risk into the sector, potentially increasing scrutiny from global investors.
- Loss of Trust: An executive in a financial services company with such a history erodes the confidence of customers and partners who rely on trust.
- Brain Drain and Inclusion: The allegations of misogyny and contempt for workers could deter talented individuals, particularly women and those from less privileged backgrounds, from joining the local tech sector.
Demand for Accountability: What will Paystack and Stripe’s Response Be?
Ezra Olubi’s silent retreat by deleting his @0x account is unacceptable. As a corporate leader and national honouree, his fiduciary duty demands public transparency and accountability. The lack of a clear response from Olubi or Paystack/Stripe has turned social media into a courtroom.
On X and other platforms, thousands of users are demanding immediate and decisive action. The consensus among the online community is that the severity of the allegations and the nature of his archived tweets require more than silence. The public is watching closely to see how the Paystack and Stripe boards will respond to the crisis surrounding one of their highest-ranking executives.
The looming question for the global tech community is: Will Stripe allow an executive with this documented public history to remain on the board of one of its subsidiaries, or will corporate governance prevail? The response, or lack thereof, will set a major precedent for ethical standards in the fast-growing African tech sector.
