Bridgette Avokoa

Nigerian tech entrepreneur who pioneered fintech solutions for unbanked women

Bridgette Avokoa (b. 1985) is a Nigerian innovator whose Avokazi platform revolutionized financial inclusion in West Africa. Launching her blockchain-based payment system in 2015, she created Africa's first decentralized marketplace specifically targeting women traders in informal sectors. By 2018, her platform processed over $50M in transactions while providing microloans through smart contracts. Her work was featured in World Economic Forum reports as a model for gender-inclusive finance. Avokoa's 2016 TEDx talk "How Blockchain Can Free Women" has been viewed 2.3 million times. She later expanded into agritech with AvokaziAgri, connecting smallholder farmers to global markets using satellite data analytics.