Konga Will Dominate e-Commerce in Africa, Says Forbes

 Emma Okonji

Konga, Nigeria’s e-commerce group has been identified as a strong player that is on the verge of dominating the African e-commerce scene.

Forbes, a global media company, focusing on business investment, technology, entrepreneurship, leadership, and lifestyle, revealed this in a special feature published in its Forbes Africa edition last week.

In addition to commending the remarkable growth trajectory that has seen Konga become the first African e-commerce player to hit profitability, Forbes equally referenced the various thriving subsidiaries that have transformed the Konga Group into a formidable, flourishing e-commerce ecosystem, while also highlighting the pivotal role of KongaPay, a Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN)-licensed fintech platform as a leader in the Nigerian e-wallet space.

Following its 2018 acquisition by the Zinox Group and the tremendous growth it has recorded, Konga, Forbes noted, would potentially attract over a $2 billion valuation when it eventually decides to go public, as widely envisaged.

‘‘While the brand eyes its listing on the stock market to fulfil its potential in the marketplace, there are reports that it boasts over $2 billion valuation, thanks to its new acquisition by Zinox.

‘‘Konga has continued to show promise in the online marketplace. After its acquisition, a review of the company’s performance shows the brand experienced over 800 per cent growth. This surpasses expectations in e-commerce sectors across the continent. The new phase of Konga, driven by young, ambitious and innovative individuals, has seen it rake over $300 million in investments,” according to the report.

In a chat with Co-CEO, Konga Group, Prince Nnamdi Ekeh, Forbes also beamed its focus on the future of e-commerce in Africa, with Prince Ekeh who heaped praises on his Co-CEO, Nick Imudia and the entire Management and staff of the Konga Group for their resilience and dedication, revealing that the future remains bright.

‘‘E-commerce in Africa is set to take off to unprecedented heights in the next decade and players who are well positioned will reap the fruits. Like I mentioned before, we have already seen triple-digit annual growth numbers and yet there is still so much market share left to capture as we transition people into the e-commerce era.

‘‘I also believe blockchain and decentralized finance will play a great role in improving financial inclusion in the continent which will give people more access to digital services like e-commerce. As economists, we were trained to look at indicators and so far, most critical indicators trend positively: Population, youth population, mobile penetration growth rates, connectivity growth rates. If these indicators continue to improve, I have no doubt that Africa will house one of the biggest e-commerce players in the world, and my job is to make that Konga,’’ Ekeh said.