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Zenith Bank Gives ₦190m to 13 African Innovators at Tech Fair
Zenith Bank Gives ₦190m to 13 African Innovators at Tech Fair
The sixth edition of the competition attracted more than 3,000 entries across its hackathon, startup pitch, and secondary school innovation categories.
Cutstruct Technology and Team Solo emerged winners of the startup pitch and hackathon competitions, respectively, receiving ₦35m each.
Winners will receive six weeks of mentorship and incubation support to develop their solutions and strengthen their businesses.
November 6, () – Zenith Bank Plc has awarded ₦190m to 13 winners across three innovation competitions at the sixth edition of its annual technology event, Zenith Bank Tech Fair 2026, as it expands support for technology-driven businesses and young innovators.
The competition, held virtually on Thursday, November 5, under the theme, “AI: Embrace or Extinct”, attracted more than 3,000 submissions from developers, entrepreneurs and secondary school students.
The prize pool, which the bank described as the largest in the event’s history, was distributed across the Hackathon, Startup Pitch Competition and the newly introduced Future Innovators Challenge.
In the Hackathon category, Team Solo emerged as the overall winner, receiving ₦35m, while 10x Brains came second with ₦20m.
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Rumour Hunters placed third with ₦15m, while Òmìnira and Team Avera received ₦10m each for finishing fourth and fifth.
Cutstruct Technology Limited won the Startup Pitch Competition with a ₦35m prize, followed by Sproutly, which received ₦20m. PharmaRun came third with ₦15m, while AUI BRAND and ProDevs received ₦10m each.
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The Future Innovators Challenge, introduced to encourage technology-driven problem-solving among secondary school students, produced three winners.
Caleb British International School received ₦5m for emerging first, Queen of the Rosary College, Onitsha, came second with ₦3m, while Regina Pacis International School received ₦2m for third place.
Zenith Bank founder Jim Ovia
Winners develop solutions across key sectors
The winning entries included solutions targeting construction procurement, school payments, healthcare access and education.
Cutstruct Technology Limited’s LiveVend platform connects property developers and contractors with suppliers, while Sproutly provides a fintech solution for school payments.
PharmaRun seeks to improve access to authentic medicines through a network of pharmacies. Meanwhile, ReLearn, developed by Caleb British International School, redistributes used textbooks to students in underserved communities.
Beyond the cash awards, the winners will participate in a six-week mentorship and incubation programme designed to help them refine their products, strengthen their business models and scale their operations.
Speaking at the event, the Founder of Zenith Bank, Jim Ovia, said the initiative reflected his vision of empowering young people through technology and developing innovators with global reach.
He said he hoped the programme would help produce individuals capable of making an impact on the scale of technology entrepreneurs such as Bill Gates, Steve Jobs and Jeff Bezos.
The Group Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the bank, Adaora Umeoji, said the growing influence of artificial intelligence made it important for businesses and individuals to adapt to changes in the technology landscape.
She cited the bank’s investments in digital infrastructure, products and services, including its Zenith Intelligent Virtual Assistant, ZIVA. She also highlighted the role of its fintech subsidiary, FinoPay, in developing the SMART AfCFTA Portal to facilitate intra-African trade.
“The next generation of global AI champions can and should come from Africa,” Umeoji said, urging innovators to develop ethical and scalable solutions for sectors such as agriculture, healthcare, education and manufacturing.
The Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, commended the bank’s contribution to the technology ecosystem and reaffirmed the state government’s commitment to supporting innovation and technology businesses.
The Minister of Innovation, Science and Technology, Kingsley Tochukwu Udeh, represented by the Director-General of the National Space Research and Development Agency, Matthew Adepoju, also called for stronger collaboration between government and private-sector organisations to translate innovation into businesses and jobs.
Bank expands support for early-stage technology businesses
The event featured a keynote address by Zach Kass, former Head of Go-to-Market at OpenAI, who examined the development of artificial intelligence and the emergence of autonomous agents.
He challenged participants to consider the role of human judgement and values as more activities become automated.
Other speakers included the Managing Director of the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System, Mike Ogbalu III; Google’s Head of Payment Partnerships for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, Deniz Oran; and the Managing Director of Nigerian Communications Satellite Limited, Jane Egerton-Idehen.
The Director-General of the National Information Technology Development Agency, Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, and the Regional Managing Director for West Africa at Network International, Chinwe Uzoho, also participated.
The Tech Fair was conceived by Ovia as a platform for connecting technology talent with funding, mentorship and business opportunities.
Previous winners have developed solutions in areas including retail payments, credit verification, digital identity and educational technology.
They include JumpnPass, CreditChek, TrustLoop and Cubbes Technologies Limited, winners of the 2025 Hackathon and Startup Pitch Competition, respectively.
With the introduction of the Future Innovators Challenge, the bank has extended the competition to secondary school students, providing an avenue for younger participants to develop and showcase technology-based solutions.
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