Notes From The Week #24

What’s good people? Hope we’re all doing well. One week down! I’ve been in a pretty good mood recently—mainly due to the fact that I’ve allowed myself to have hope in Manchester United again and it seems like we’re getting some decent momentum going. But it’s always the hope that kills. The Premier League transfer window is open so I’m optimistic that we may make some exciting signings and have a good push in the second half of the season. That’s all the football for this week.

This week we’ll be looking at the company some people are deeming to be the Apple of Crypto. We’ll then take a quick look at the Imu-Ahia apprenticeship scheme.

Ledger - The Apple of Crypto?

The potential of crypto crossing the chasm from early adopters and becoming viable for a more mainstream audience will depend on its ability to provide utility to regular consumers; who do not necessarily fully understand the ins and outs of blockchain technology. One way of doing this will be by following the playbook of successful consumer electronics companies that have managed to bridge the gap from initial enthusiasts of the technology to mainstream usability. No company provides a better case study in this regard than Apple.

Apple was able to revolutionise consumer electronics by providing a “heartfelt connection with consumers” largely based on their ability to appeal to the usability of their products. They did so in a largely crowded market that sought to reinforce specifications as opposed to benefits. A mistake many companies make when promoting their products.

Last month, Ledger—a company which creates a hardware wallets for individuals and organisations to self-custody their own cryptocurrency released a product called Stax. The consumer electronic provides the same level of security as currently existing Ledger wallets—Nano X and the Nano S Plus—but is seeking to provide a heightened level of usability.

The Ledger Stax has a touchscreen that allows you to sign transactions in a more convenient way than any previous Ledger wallet. The design of the Ledger Stax was led by Tony Fadell. Tony Fadell is incredibly well known in the consumer hardware space being the person that led the team at Apple that created the iPod—overseeing all its hardware, software and accessories development. The addition of Fadell to Ledger’s operating team and advisory board is a strong indicator that Ledger seeks to lead the way in improving the usability of it’s hardware and crypto in general to a mainstream audience still figuring out the use cases for the elusive technology.

Nigeria’s Indigenous Venture Capital System

The Igbo1 Apprenticeship system popularly called ‘Imu-Ahia’; which translates to ‘to learn market/trade’, has been considered as perhaps; one of the major factors; that helped pull the majority of South-Eastern families out of poverty within 30 months of the Nigerian Civil War. Its purpose is to spur economic growth, stability, and sustainable livelihood by financing and investing in human resources through vocational training.

The apprentices learn how to do business for four to eight years, and at the end of their tenure, get cash infusion, support and blessing from the master to start their own business. There is no salary paid during the tenure but basic necessities such as shelter, meals, clothing and healthcare are provided for by the master (Oga). Once the apprentice graduates and is settled, he has a responsibility of doing for others back at home what his master has done for him by picking an apprentice. Meanwhile, his master must also pick another apprentice. It is thus a model that keeps engaging the young in a virtuous circle. The Igbo culture frowns at the young roaming the streets in idleness. The apprentice system of the Igbo ensures that if a child is unable to go to school, instead of staying back at home, he learns a trade.

The Imu-Ahia Apprenticeship system is not without its faults. I was in Dubai a few years back and was speaking to a friend who had business associates that participated in the Imu-Ahia. He expressed that some of them had disdain for the scheme as due to its informal nature there are no checks and balances to ensure you are settled by your Oga outside of their goodwill. Some of them were not settled to a manner they thought adequate for the services they rendered. A reminder that if the system is ever formalised—checks and balances will need to be in place to ensure all parties are adequately satisfied with the system.

If interested in learning more about Imu-Ahia—below is a brilliant TED talk discussing the dynamics of Imu-Ahia in real-time at Alaba International Market in Lagos.

Until next week. Peace.

Thank you for reading Notes From The Week.