Nigerian Agri-Fintech XchangeBox Wins 2025 Catapult: Inclusion Africa Award for Driving Agricultural Finance Innovation

Nigerian agri-fintech startup XchangeBox has been crowned the overall winner of the 8th edition of Catapult: Inclusion Africa, a leading accelerator programme that celebrates startups advancing financial inclusion across the continent.

The five-day bootcamp, held in Nairobi, Kenya, brought together Africa’s most promising fintech innovators developing scalable solutions to improve access to finance for underserved populations. Organised by the Luxembourg House of Financial Technology (LHoFT) in partnership with ADA and the Government of Luxembourg, the initiative focuses on impact, scalability, and funding, and coincides with the annual African Inclusive Finance Week.

XchangeBox CEO Abiola Jimoh described the victory as both a validation of the startup’s mission and a renewed call to accelerate progress. “Winning in Nairobi — the heartbeat of African fintech — validates what we’ve been building: a bold idea that liquidity should reach the people who feed our nation,” Jimoh said. “This win challenges us to scale our impact faster, smarter, and more responsibly.”

Founded in Nigeria, XchangeBox leverages digital platforms to boost liquidity and transparency in agricultural finance, providing smallholder farmers and agribusinesses with faster access to working capital. The company’s innovative model ensures funds reach farmers within days rather than months, fostering trust and efficiency across value chains. Through partnerships with firms like FaLGates and Agrovesto, XchangeBox enables instant payments to farmers, strengthening its goal of creating an inclusive, tech-driven agricultural ecosystem.

Jimoh noted that the accelerator reinforced key lessons on structure, impact, and partnerships, saying “structure unlocks trust,” “impact and scale must travel together,” and “partnerships accelerate reach.”

Targeting the global agricultural supply chain, XchangeBox is expanding trade between Africa and international markets, starting with Nigeria’s export of sesame seeds, hibiscus flowers, charcoal, grains, and fruits used in global food processing industries.

Now in its eighth year, Catapult: Inclusion Africa continues to serve as a launchpad for Africa’s most transformative fintech startups, connecting them with investors, regulators, and development institutions to deepen financial inclusion across emerging economies.