Afriguild strikes investment deal with Adaverse  

Afriguild aims to provide opportunities across Africa through gaming, education and community building.

Afriguild, a Nigerian-based blockchain gaming guild-turned DAO (decentralized autonomous organization) that provides opportunities for Africans across the continent through gaming, education and community building, has reached an agreement with Adaverse for an undisclosed investment to support its mission to onboard 100 million Africans into Web3 over the next five years. 

Afriguild: An early-stage startup

Having started as a social gaming enterprise, Afriguild developed its offering into a diversified platform that enables participants to access blockchain P2E games and other income-generating opportunities in the recently formed Metaverse. As a result, it is providing a gateway for the continent’s youth to engage with Web3, while being rewarded for their time and skill. 

Its latest partner, Adaverse was launched in September 2021 as a joint venture between EMURGO Africa and Everest Ventures to identify and provide support for African-based startups, focused towards Web3, DeFi, NFTs gaming and the Metaverse. 

Speaking exclusively with Gulf Africa Review, Toyosi Abolarin, founder and chief executive officer commented, “Afriguild wants to make the possibilities of Web3 accessible to everyone, by creating entry-level opportunities. We have a strong desire to inspire the average African to be a part of the global revolution by empowering them to become participants and contributors through education, gaming and community building. Nigeria represents a perfect market for our initial growth phase, given that 60% of the population is below the age of 30, and with the right skills are given the opportunity to earn above minimum wage from the comfort of their own home, any time, day or night.”

While the launch has had a clear emphasis on gaming, Abolarin is equally as excited about the next phase which will focus on education, providing participants with access to the latest courses on cryptocurrencies, blockchain and coding, thereby helping to support the future of the continent’s digital economy.

“Our next phase is to provide a deeper education within the Web3/ blockchain environment, thereby providing the necessary tools for those interested to thrive in the digital economy. So far, we’ve partnered with AIESEC, and a Web3 startup that has Learn-to-Earn. We believe both these relationships are strategically important for our distribution and growth. Beyond Nigeria, we have recently launched a presence in Kenya, and it is our aim to host physical and virtual events by Q1 2023.”

Fast growth markets

Aside from the continent, Abolarin made the decision to register Afriguild further afield in the Middle East with the DMCC Crypto Centre, a dedicated ecosystem under the Dubai Multi Commodities Centre that is leading the charge to develop and expand cryptographic, blockchain and distributed ledger technologies. Having only recently launched in May 2021, the centre has already attracted over 400 companies, with a further 1,000 registering interest. A recent report has suggested that it is now home to 36% of the UAE’s crypto and blockchain businesses. 

Commenting on the Crypto Centre’s launch, DMCC chairman and CEO, Ahmed Bin Sulayem said: “It is becoming increasingly clear that crypto and blockchain technologies have an enormous potential to advance global trade. Dubai has recognized this potential, and the DMCC Crypto Centre will fully support our mandate to attract and promote trade through the emirate. With the DMCC Crypto Centre providing a progressive and supportive regulatory environment, a strong pool of industry talent, and an ecosystem that provides access to capital, resources and opportunities to crypto firms, we are perfectly placed to support crypto businesses from across the world.”

Since its formal foundation in November 2021, Afriguild has seen rapid pick up in engagement with over 3,000 users utilizing the platform on a regular basis. Under current estimates, the company believes that a target of 20,000 regular users before end of year is within reach. 

Speaking on the company’s recent agreement with Adaverse, and potential for further collaborations in the future, Abolarin said: “Our agreement with Adaverse is a great start for our long-term model of collaboration, particularly with companies that share our passion for helping everyday Africans achieve their goals, whether financial or educational.”

Despite an impressive H1 2022, startup investment across the MENA region slowed in July, according to a report by Wamda.