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Austin Okere (CWG Founder)/ The $35,000 Decision That Built a $90 Million Company!
1 hour 35 minutes Posted Oct 29, 2025 at 4:05 pm.
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– The Truth About Building in Africa
– Opportunities in Africa
– Starting CWG with $35,000
– Leaving His Job & Early Struggles
– Partnering with Dell
– Building Nigeria’s Maintenance Culture
– Telecom Expansion and VSAT Networks
– Managing FX Challenges
– The Afropolitan Toast Segment
– Software Beginnings & Banking Opportunity
– The Infosys Partnership
– Y2K & Winning Three Banks
– Scaling CWG Through Banking Consolidation
– $10M Aureos Investment
– Closing Tony Elumelu at Midnight
– Surviving the 2008 Global Meltdown
– Preparing for IPO
– Listing CWG at $90M Valuation
– 2,500x Return for Early Investors
– Private Equity Due Diligence Process
– Navigating the Nigerian IPO Process
– Co-Founders and Partnership Structure
– The T-Person & H-Person Framework
– Succession Planning & Letting Go
– Transition to Also Leadership Academy
– Redefining What It Means to Be a Billionaire
– How to Join a Board
– Ethics and Corporate Governance
– When CBN Banned ATMs
– Turning a Crisis Into Opportunity
– Reflections on the Abraaj Collapse
– Staying Grounded After Success
– Building the Also Leadership Academy
– Scaling Through COVID & Online Training
– Legacy, Impact, and Shared Prosperity
– Advice to Young Entrepreneurs
– Defining a Billionaire by Impact
– Lessons From 28-Year-Old Austin
– Closing Reflections & Outro
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1:35:35
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Show notes
Austin Okere, the founder of Computer Warehouse Group (CWG), Nigeria’s first technology company to IPO on the Nigerian Stock Exchange shares the extraordinary 20-year journey of building from $35,000 in seed capital to a $90 million public company.
In this powerful conversation, Austin reveals the hard truths about entrepreneurship in Africa: raising capital without structure, surviving the 2008 crash, handling rejection while scaling ethically, and knowing when to step down to make room for the next generation.
He explains:
◼️ Why building in Africa is harder and more meaningful than anywhere else
◼️ How to raise money ethically and survive multiple rejections
◼️ What most founders get wrong about succession and legacy
◼️ How to build trust, partnerships & governance investors respect
◼️ Why true wealth is measured by impact, not bank balance
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LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/in/austinokere
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