Paystack co-founder Ezra Olubi sacked after old creepy tweets went viral

 

Paystack co-founder and former Chief Technology Officer, Ezra Olubi, says he has been fired by the company over allegations of s3xual misconduct and insists he was dismissed unfairly. 

The development was disclosed by Olubi in a blog post published on Saturday, 23 November 2025, following days of controversy triggered by a viral social media post accusing him of abusive behaviour.

The accusations sparked renewed scrutiny of several explicit tweets he wrote between 2009 and 2013, many of which contained s3xually suggestive comments involving colleagues and minors. Online outrage grew until Paystack announced that Olubi had been suspended and that an “independent” investigation would be launched into the allegations.

In his blog post titled Terminated, Olubi wrote: “Over the past few days, my name and reputation, built over years as co-founder and technical leader at Paystack, have been called into question because of information circulating online.” He said the board informed him of his suspension and told him that a formal review process would be conducted. According to him, this prompted him to remain silent. “Once that process began, I chose not to make any public statements. I did this to avoid interfering with the investigation and because I expected a fair, thorough and unbiased review of the allegations being discussed online,” he wrote.

Olubi stated that despite the ongoing investigation, he was dismissed without being granted an opportunity to defend himself. “I was not given a meeting or an opportunity to respond before my contract was ended,” he said, adding that the decision “appeared to contravene the terms of my suspension and the company’s internal policies.”

He said the company’s process allowed “assumptions and misrepresentations to spread without challenge,” noting that the resurfaced tweets do not reflect his true behaviour. “Those who know me personally or professionally understand that the posts being circulated do not reflect my conduct or the way I have lived my life. I have always… conducted myself in a manner that respects everyone’s dignity and safety,” he wrote.

In his statement, Olubi did not deny writing the old tweets but insisted they were not representative of how he treats people. He concluded by saying, “My legal team will explore possible steps in response.”

The controversy began after an individual who claimed to have had a previous relationship with Olubi posted allegations online, prompting users to dig up his decade-old tweets. Some of the posts contained comments many described as inappropriate or referencing workplace touching. None of the public allegations involved claims of r@pe.

Paystack had earlier confirmed that Olubi had been suspended pending an investigation and said it intended to appoint an independent reviewer. However, the company has not yet responded publicly to the claim that Olubi was fired before the investigation was completed or that he was denied the chance to respond. It remains unclear whether the investigation had formally begun or progressed.

Olubi and Shola Akinlade co-founded Paystack in 2015, and the company grew into one of Africa’s most respected fintech firms. It became the first Nigerian startup to be accepted into Y Combinator and was acquired by Stripe in 2020 for more than $200 million. The situation now places heightened scrutiny on Paystack’s internal policies and the broader expectations of accountability within Nigeria’s tech ecosystem.