As mobile and social commerce continues to rise in Nigeria, accounting for over 70% of online transactions, and with the sector expected to reach US$20 billion at the end of 2025, the rise of many startups building tech platforms for the opportunity is a welcome ecosystem development.
The problem being solved
One problem identified by shopping aggregator, 440, is the unavailability of real-time, multi-platform price discovery globally, with consumers struggling to find products that fit their budget and quality needs from a single marketplace.
Gracious Akande, CEO 440, explains: “We were having our merchants and small businesses scanning through Alibaba, Shein, Amazon, Aliexpress etc for best orders. Usually these businesses needed to download tens of apps before a relatively profitable product discovery can be made.”
There is also the problem of sourcing for payment options in the local currencies of purchase. “Merchants were constantly scrambling for dollars, yuan, rupees, contending with speculative exchange rates to pay for their products”, Gracious explained.
While building, 89% of the customers 440 engaged also stated they liked to be notified when the right deals for their product categories show up; be connected to the most affordable logistics service for delivery and pay in a homogenous currency across countries.
How 440 is solving this problem
Through their mobile app, 440 has aggregated over 10,000 international stores from over 100 countries, making available over 100,000 daily deals and discounts to consumers and retailers.
When asked how they differed from e-commerce giants globally, 440 COO, Elijah Ogunle, explained that they would rather be viewed as a platform that brings every marketplace together.
“Using extensive API integration and our AI engine for price discovery and comparison, our platform intelligently curates products from a vast global marketplace, presenting options for users to pay in their local currency”, Ogunle added.
440 claims consumers no longer have to worry about interacting with multiple platforms and dealing with multiple currencies, as the app simplifies the experience whether shopping from Alibaba, Flipkart, Shein, Instagram, eBay, or Jumia.
Positioning for the global market
The platform has also expressed their intention to scale to other countries from Q3, driven by Africans immigrating with their families to different parts of the world.
“In a selective diaspora rollout, Nigerians are now requesting orders from merchants back home in a trusted, digital and hassle-free manner”
“We believe we can be that platform that simplifies the commerce experience for Africans globally”.Gracious concluded.
About 440
440 Technology Limited is a Shopping Aggregator connecting Africans to millions of products, deals, merchants and payment opportunities across 100+ countries. You can access 440 on Playstore and Appstore.
