By Charles Pemu 
Paystack, the Nigerian payments company owned by Stripe, has suspended its Co-founder and Chief Technology Officer, Ezra Olubi, following an allegation of sexual misconduct involving a subordinate. The company has immediately launched a formal investigation into the matter.
The controversy gained public attention after an individual who had a prior relationship with Olubi published personal complaints online on Wednesday. This post led to renewed scrutiny of disturbing, sexually suggestive tweets Olubi had posted between 2009 and 2013.
Paystack confirmed the action and the initiation of a formal probe in a statement made to TechCabal on Friday.
“Paystack is aware of the allegations involving our Co-founder, Ezra Olubi. We take matters of this nature extremely seriously. Effective immediately, Ezra has been suspended from all duties and responsibilities pending the outcome of a formal investigation,” the company stated.
Paystack emphasized that it would not be providing further details to protect the integrity of the process and out of respect for the individuals involved. Olubi has since deactivated his X account following the resurfacing of the old tweets.
The resurfaced tweets reignited public debate over personal conduct and accountability, especially given their nature. Examples of the controversial tweets include:
- “I judge my female friends by the sound of their pee make. Thanks to the audio in my bathroom”.
- “Save water. Take a bath with your neighbour’s daughter”.
- One tweet from May 23, 2011, read: “Monday will be more fun with an ‘a’ in it. Touch a coworker today. Inappropriately”.
Olubi co-founded Paystack in 2015 with Shola Akinlade and played a key role in building the company’s technology infrastructure. Paystack became the first Nigerian startup accepted into the prestigious Y Combinator accelerator in 2016 and was later acquired by global payments giant Stripe in 2020 for over US$200 million.