Startup Loot Box
Share
Startup Loot Box 📦 A newsletter unpacking wild startup money plays, failed tech, fast exits & hype gone wrong. Real stories. Brutal breakdowns.
This week, the startup world’s buzzing with drama
$120M flowed into generative AI, per TechCrunch, but all eyes are on Astronomer CEO Andy Byron’s viral Coldplay kiss cam moment with HR chief Kristin Cabot, sparking workplace conduct debates.
Posts on X call Byron “toxic,” and his deleted LinkedIn post praising Cabot hasn’t helped.
When leadership falters, startups stumble—let’s unpack Artifact’s flop to learn how missteps sink even the brightest ventures.
Learn more: https://startuplootbox.beehiiv.com/p/unpacking-artifact-s-ai-news-flop
04/07/2025
Nigerian Open Banking Startup Okra Quietly Shut Down In May 2025
Inside the Loot – Okra: From Open Banking Hope to Quiet Shutdown
At one point, Okra was the pride of African fintech. Backed by $16 million in global funding, it promised developers across Nigeria a single API to access financial data, Africa’s answer to Plaid.
By May 2025, the dream had come to an end.
No tweet, no blog post. Just silence. Sources told Techpoint the team was informed that both Okra and its cloud spin-off Nebula were being shut down. Co-founder Fara Ashiru Jituboh had already stepped away, now head of engineering at UK startup Kernel.
What killed it? Not a product flaw. Learn more: https://startuplootbox.beehiiv.com/p/startup-stories-you-won-t-read-on-techcrunch-this-week-s-breakdown
Click here to claim your Sponsored Listing.
Category
Address
Lagos