CYST co-founders Nii Osae Osae Dade and Kofi Genfi
CYST, a Ghanaian software innovation company which has specialized in Artificial Intelligence (AI), has made it to the Forbes Africa 30 under 30 technology category with its flagship product Mazzuma.
The tech company was co-founded by Kofi Genfi and Nii Osae Osae Dade.
Mazzuma is a mobile money payment system that utilizes distributed secure infrastructure and crypto currency to enable seamless payments using the token called MAZ.
Transactions made on the Mazzuma platform are instantaneous and free of extra transaction fees.
The duo, in an interaction with DAILY GUIDE, expressed delight at the recognition, adding, “It has given us a lot of credibility and shows that what we are actually doing is necessary.”
They indicated that the company, which started in 2013, has been able to help many Ghanaians process transactions using the Mazzuma mobile platform.
“Being listed on Forbes has been like a pat on our shoulders, and a good source of confidence. Now, we are getting more people connecting and this has been very good for business,” they said.
The co-founders of CYST observed that “we have so many stories about people who were in tight situations but with this we have been able to help.”
Mr. Ganfi, a graduate of Ashesi University, said the prospects of CYST are bright.
“We plan to be one of the few companies in the country to branch into other AI fields like block chain.
“Our focus is to build the block chain aspect of our business. We are working at building technology locally that will expose us to the international market which is a huge advancement for us,” he said.
Nii Osae Osae Dade, a graduate of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), said CYST is poised to compete on the global scale due to the quality of its products.
He opined that although block chain was now gaining ground in the Ghanaian market, just like mobile money, the system of payment would be accepted eventually.
“We are used to working with technologies that at the beginning people doubt, but at the end we will accept it because it takes time to adopt to change,” he said.
The duo, who received some government support, called for more policies and enabling environment to help promote innovation and entrepreneurship in Ghana.
“Most people started and they need support and enabling environment, at the end of the day the private industries end up employing more of the country’s population,” he said.
“We currently have approximately a little over 25,000 users and have so far processed GH¢3 million since we started the mobile app.”
This year marks the Forbes 30 Under 30 fourth edition inspired by the growing number of entrepreneurs all under the age of 30 in three sectors – business, technology and creative.
By Jamila Akweley Okertchiri