African crypto trading marketplace Vibra has reportedly shut down
The ongoing bear market in the crypto industry globally during this period has cast a shadow over many crypto startups that boast millions in their funding portfolio. Several of these companies have been forced to either scale back or shutter completely due to the challenging market conditions.
A recent example is the Africa-focused crypto trading app Vibra, which secured $6 million in VC funding from investors like Lateral Frontiers and Dragonfly Capital.
Vibra has reportedly shuttered its services in Ghana, Kenya, and Nigeria.
Although the company's co-founder claims that only its Nigerian users will be affected, Vibra’s Telegram channel along with quotes from current and former employees (some of whom were allegedly given an ultimatum to resign or be terminated) reveal otherwise, confirming the app’s shutdown in all of its African markets.
According to one employee (who remained anonymous), revenue-related concerns played a role in Vibra's decline, an issue that underscores a larger problem faced by several ambitious African crypto startups in 2023, which have been hit hard by the crypto crunch.
Previously, Techloy reported on how corporate governance failures and even founder-driven fraud led to the downfall of Ghanaian fintech startup Dash, which raised over $86 million in funding over five years.
