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Funding for African startups …Ghanaian fintech ‘Built’ makes list of top 60 businesses
Indigenous technology companies continue to gain local and international recognition as they commit to making life easy for individuals and businesses by developing innovative products and services.
The spotlight today is on the team at Built Financial Technologies Limited, a Ghanaian financial technology company (fintech) that is enabling access to business and financial software tools for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Africa.
Early this week, the firm was selected as one of the 60 companies across Africa as beneficiaries of the Google for Startups Black Founders Fund in Africa — an initiative aimed at supporting black-founded startups on the fast-growing technology landscape.
Selected start-ups, per the announcement, would receive non-dilutive awards of between $50,000 and $100,000 and up to $200,000 in Google Cloud credit in addition to hands-on business and technical mentorship from Google’s network of mentors and facilitators, while learning the best practices on a range of tech-related topics and strategies.
The co-founders of ‘Built’ comprising Ms. Mary-Anne Aikins, Ms. Rosemary Kwofie, Mr. Yusif Katulie and Mr. Edward Neequaye are excited about the acknowledgment as the company continues to “build the digital infrastructure that SMEs need to launch, manage and grow their businesses.”
Impact
The young entrepreneurs, in an interview with The Spectator, described the award as a “further validation” of the impact the company had made over the years, indicating that the honour would inspire them to greater heights as they continue to make valuable propositions and stand tall in the financial technology space.
“It is a win for us and for the SMEs we support, as this is going to provide more fuel to keep building relevant solutions for SMEs in the markets we operate in,” Mr. Neequaye, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of the company said.
Mr. Katulie noted: “What makes us different is our approach to solving the access to credit gap in the market, first by building a financial operating system for SMEs to handle all financial transactions such as invoicing, accounting, payroll, payments, Point of Sale (POS) and secondly, building an ecosystem/suite of financial services.”
Company
The company has been in existence for the past six years and has supported over 20,000 SMEs. The ‘Built’ platform, according to the co-founders, currently with over 6,000 businesses, among other things, enables businesses to accept faster payments from their customers, from mobile money to card payments.
Its financial services again allows SMEs to access loans, via a microcredit subsidiary called ‘Thrive Microcredit’, and from financial partners offering insurance, savings, investments, hire purchases, among others.
With subsidiaries in Kenya, Nigeria and Sierra Leone, the company aims to “normalise growth and prosperity for Africa’s SMEs, most of which currently do not grow beyond the level at which they started.”
The company again has the ‘Built Accounting’ mobile application on the Google Play Store and Apple App Store which continues to attract positive reviews from owners of small businesses.
Female co-founders
Rosemary and Mary-Anne, the two female co-founders at the company have an interesting connection and are impressed with their contributions to the growth of Built Technologies.
They both attended Archbishop Porter Girls’ Senior High School in Takoradi and the University of Ghana Business School (UGBS) where they studied Business Administration, majoring in Accounting, and are now helping to provide solutions to small businesses.
Rosemary Kwofie
Rosemary is an entrepreneur with over six years of experience in finance and management consulting for small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) while Mary-Anne is an Entrepreneur and a Chartered Accountant with over six years of experience in accounting, taxation and finance for small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs).
As Chief Operating Officer, she handles business development and partnership with financial service providers and ensures “operational excellence” across various departments of the company.
The passion to co-found ‘Built’, she explained, was born out of her volunteerism with the Yale University alumni and American Field Service (IEP Ghana) where she trained businesswomen in bookkeeping and other trade practices at Yamoransa, near Cape Coast in the Central Region.
“The results of that work inspired me to commit to helping SMEs owners grow and drive financial inclusion for them,” she said.
She was among 24 students selected out of over 1,000 applicants for the Kennedy-Lugar Youth Exchange and Study (KL-YES) Programme in the USA, where she lived and studied for a year in Frazee, Minnesota.
She has final level qualification from the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) and is currently the treasurer of the KL-YES Ghana Alumni Association. She was Peace volunteer for the 2012 Ghana Elections and worked at University of Ghana Staff Basic School as a volunteer ICT Tutor from 2012 to 2014.
Mary-Anne Aikins
As Chief Financial Officer, she works with the accounting team to provide virtual accounting services to users of the ‘Built’ platform and ensures “risk management practices are in place for disbursement and collection of loans.”
Her passion for helping SMEs build “credible financial profiles” was born out of her stint with the global accounting firm PKF Ghana which gave her insights into the difficulties SMEs face in keeping reliable and adequate financial data.
Over the years, she has trained over 500 business owners on the importance of bookkeeping and how to use technology to improve their operations for growth.
She holds a professional qualifying certification from the Institute of Chartered Accountants Ghana where she is a member and is a student member of the Chartered Institute of Taxation, Ghana.
With the support from Google, the team at ‘Built’ say they are “drawing closer” to becoming the most preferred platform for SMEs across Africa.
By Ernest Nutsugah
Ghana’s parliament has marked the 2nd edition of May Day 2026 under the theme “ Welcome Home”.
It was special day meant to celebrate the invaluable support of the workforce, recognizing the commitment, resilience, and contributions of workers to institutional growth and national development.
Delivering the message on behalf of the Speaker, the 1st Deputy Speaker, Bernard Ahiafor, described the theme as very apt, appropriate, and timely, noting that Parliament is more than a workplace, it is a shared home.
He emphasized that we cannot speak about work without speaking about people, reminding everyone that the true measure of our work is the well-being of our people.
He urged that our traditional clothing become an integral part of our everyday clothing, and that our local languages must become integral to our daily lives, interwoven into education and practiced at home.
Referencing Standing Order 63, which captures the use of local language as optional in deliberations, he encouraged a renewed commitment to identity, saying it is significant that we “come home” and present who we are so future generations can inherit a story they can fully tell.
The Clerk, Mr. Ebenezer Ahumah Djietror, in his remarks commended officers for their dedication and devotion to duty, calling on them to go the extra mile and leave legacies.
Echoing the reminder that an unexamined life is not worth living, he described the event as an invitation to reconnect with our roots through cultural revival.
The Deputy Clerk, C&FMS, Dr. Gloria Sarku Kumawu, urged all not to forget their roots, the people behind the stories of ministries, industries, and the strides made both in-house and beyond.
What began last year has now become a meaningful tradition, showcasing Ghanaian heritage, fostering unity, and encouraging innovation under the principle of diversity for unity and diversity for progress, she added.
The gathering brought together leadership, public officials, and staff across all levels, along with the media, standing as a unifying platform that honored service, celebrated culture, and reaffirmed a shared commitment to national development.
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Manhyia would serve as Ghana’s unifying force …Otumfuo assures on commemoration of 27 years on the Golden Stool
The Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, last Friday celebrated his 27th enstoolment with a colourful and culture-rich ceremony at the Manhyia Palace in Kumasi, drawing a distinguished gathering of dignitaries from across Ghana and beyond.
Clad in splendid kente and adorned in rich traditional regalia, the dignitaries added colour and elegance to the occasion, as the palace grounds came alive with a vibrant display of Ghanaian culture.
Traditional drumming, dancing and symbolic rites underscored the deep-rooted heritage of the Ashanti Kingdom, captivating guests and reaffirming the value of tradition in modern society.
Speaking at a high-level Executive Gala organised by the Diaspora Affairs Office of the Office of the President in strategic partnership with the E ON 3 Group, the ‘World-Meets-in-Ghana’ gala, the Asantehene urged Ghanaians to guard against the divisive tendencies of partisan politics.
The event was to honour the Asantehene’s nearly three-decade reign under the theme ‘Advancing Peace and Sustainable Economic Development through Royal Vision’.
Otumfuo Osei Tutu II noted that such attitudes threatened the country’s long-standing values of unity, civility and brotherliness.
He assured that Manhyia would continue to serve as a unifying force for the nation.
The celebration also featured the presentation of commemorative gold coins to notable national leaders, including the President, John Dramani Mahama, former Presidents John Agyekum Kufuor and Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo as well as Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, a former Vice President in recognition of their contributions to peace and national development.
By Spectator Reporter
