National Basketball Association (NBA) Africa Announces Four Prize-Winning Companies at First Startup Accelerator Demo Day

 

Festival Coins (Nigeria), Salubata (Nigeria), HustleSasa (Kenya) and UBR VR (Egypt) Win Top Prizes, including Financial Support and Mentorship; Paystack Payments Ltd., Kuramo Capital Management and Nigerian University of Technology and Management Join Demo Day as NBA Africa Triple-Double Accelerator’s First Official Partners (www.NBA.com).

NBA Deputy Commissioner and Chief Operating Officer Mark Tatum today announced the four prize-winning startup businesses from “NBA Africa Triple-Double Accelerator” (http://apo-opa.co/3ZLmNoC), which NBA Africa launched in April 2024 to support the continent’s technology ecosystem and the next generation of African entrepreneurs.  The four winning businesses – Festival Coins (Nigeria), Salubata (Nigeria), HustleSasa (Kenya) and UBR VR (Egypt) – will be awarded financial support and mentorship, including an opportunity to participate in workshops and development programs facilitated by NBA Africa or its partners. 

The 10 finalists, shortlisted from more than 700 early-stage African startup businesses that applied to participate, pitched their products to a panel of international industry leaders at a Demo Day at the NBA headquarters in New York City yesterday. The judges included Accelerate Africa Co-Founder and CEO Iyinoluwa Aboyeji; NBA Assistant General Counsel, Technology, Software Licensing and Digital Platforms Franciscus Diaba; Managing Director, Centre for the Fourth Industrial Revolution Rwanda Crystal Rugege; Chegg Inc. Executive Chairman Dan Rosensweig; and Partner at Development Partners International Joanne Yoo.  NBA Commissioner Adam Silver also delivered opening remarks and met the 10 finalists.

Below are the four winning businesses:

Festival Coins (Nigeria), an event technology company that offers a customizable, no-code event registration and ticketing platform called Tix Africa for events in Nigeria and Ghana, won the first-place prize and $50,000. 
Salubata (Nigeria), a company that creates modular shoes repurposed from plastic waste to reduce the global carbon footprint through its environmentally friendly products, won the second-place prize and $40,000. 
HustleSasa (Kenya), which provides live event services that support payment processing, attendee check-in, merchandise sales, customer data management, influencer tracking, and more, won the third-place prize and $30,000.
UBR VR (Egypt), which delivers state-of-the-art, fully immersive, in-person virtual reality (VR) experiences across Egypt, won the fourth-place prize and $20,000.

The six other finalists each received a $10,000 prize. 

The Demo Day was supported by three official partners: Paystack Payment Ltd. (http://apo-opa.co/3XHn75j), Kuramo Capital Management (http://apo-opa.co/3ZGroJ2) and Nigerian University of Technology and Management (NUTM) (http://apo-opa.co/3XHn1dX).  

“Congratulations to all of the incredibly talented entrepreneurs who participated in this year’s program, with special recognition to the 10 finalists and four distinguished winners,” said NBA Africa CEO Clare Akamanzi.  “These outstanding companies have demonstrated the creativity, drive and determination to shape the future of sport in Africa and will help the continent take its rightful place on the world stage.  We look forward to following their successes for many years to come.”

“NBA Africa Triple-Double Accelerator” is open to early-stage startups in Africa that develop solutions in event management and ticketing, youth development, AI, and digital marketing. 

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of National Basketball Association (NBA).

About NBA Africa:
NBA Africa is an affiliate of the National Basketball Association (NBA), a global sports and media organization with the mission to inspire and connect people everywhere through the power of basketball.  NBA Africa conducts the league’s business in Africa, including the Basketball Africa League (BAL), and has opened subsidiary offices in Cairo, Egypt; Dakar, Senegal; Johannesburg, South Africa; Lagos, Nigeria; and Nairobi, Kenya. The league’s efforts on the continent have focused on increasing access to basketball and the NBA through youth and elite development, social responsibility, media distribution, corporate partnerships, NBA Africa Games, NBA Stores, the BAL, and more. 

NBA games and programming are available in all 54 African countries, and the NBA has hosted three sold-out exhibition games on the continent since 2015. The BAL, a partnership between the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) and NBA Africa, is a professional league featuring 12 club teams from across Africa that concluded its fourth season in June 2024.  Fans can follow @ NBA_Africa (https://apo-opa.co/3XytCXW) and @ theBAL (https://apo-opa.co/3N01pod) on Facebook, Instagram, X and YouTube.