Paystack has suspended its co-founder and chief technology officer (CTO), Mr Ezra Olubi, after a sêxual misconduct allegation involving a subordinate surfaced online this week.
The development, which was first reported by TechCabal, follows the circulation of posts on X (formerly Twitter) on November 12 alleging inappropriate behaviour.
In a statement confirming the suspension, the Stripe-owned payments company said it had activated its internal protocols to review the claims.
“We take any allegation of this nature extremely seriously,” the company noted, adding that Mr Olubi had been asked to step away from all operational duties while a formal inquiry proceeds.
Paystack stressed that it would not provide additional comment until the review is completed “out of respect for all parties involved.”
The online controversy has also revived scrutiny of several explicit tweets published by Mr Olubi between 2009 and 2013—long before the founding of Paystack—including posts with sêxual comments about colleagues, minors, and anime characters.
These resurfaced screenshots, which spread widely on X on November 13, came at a time when the wider African tech ecosystem is confronting repeated misconduct scandals involving senior leaders.
Mr Olubi, who was conferred a national honour by late President Muhammadu Buhari, has since deactivated his X account after the old posts went viral.
The spotlight on Paystack is particularly intense due to its prominence in African fintech. Since its 2015 launch and $200 million acquisition by Stripe in October 2020, the company has been regarded as a regional model for operational excellence, culture, and governance. With dozens of its alumni now leading or building companies across the continent, the outcome of this investigation is expected to have significant ripple effects, especially regarding expectations for leadership accountability and organisational safeguards in high-trust startups.
Paystack reiterated that its review process would be “fair, transparent, and structured,” in line with its internal policies and stated values around safety and respect in the workplace.