Lagos, Nigeria – Block, Inc., the global technology company focused on financial services, has announced the winners of the TBD Hackathon, an initiative aimed at fostering technological innovation and advancing payment solutions across Africa. Emmanuel Kufre, a Nigerian developer, emerged as the grand prize winner, securing $15,000 in Bitcoin for his project, Blink – a decentralized wallet application designed to streamline payments for freelancers.
The hackathon, held in collaboration with the Africa Bitcoin Conference (ABC), challenged developers to build groundbreaking solutions leveraging tbDEX, TBD’s open-source decentralized money protocol. Kufre’s project stood out for addressing key challenges in Africa’s $28 billion gig economy, offering freelancers a seamless platform to receive global payments. Blink is currently in beta testing across five African countries.
“The level of creativity and technical expertise showcased during the TBD Hackathon has been truly inspiring,” said Angie Jones, Global Vice President of Developer Relations at Block. “These winning projects reflect the future of financial solutions across Africa. They demonstrate a profound understanding of the barriers to a unified pan-African payment system and offer transformative solutions. We are eager to see how these developers continue driving innovation in payments and technology.”
The hackathon brought together developers to tackle major obstacles such as limited access to banking, high transaction fees, and inefficient cross-border payment systems. Participants, consisting of one to two-member teams, utilized the tbDEX SDK in a sandbox environment to build and test their applications.
Kufre’s Blink earned the top prize, while two other standout projects received recognition:
- tbDEX Go by Andrew Glago and Eloke Ikiliagwu secured the second prize of $10,000 in Bitcoin for developing a localized payment solution that facilitates payments for travelers and tourists across Africa.
- Igbigi, created by Achego Tamunobelema and Fabari Agbora, won the third prize of $5,000 in Bitcoin for their privacy-focused payment app enabling instant transfers between bank accounts and applications.
Farida Bemba Nabourema, Convener of the Africa Bitcoin Conference, lauded the hackathon’s success, emphasizing its role in nurturing African tech talent.
“The Africa Bitcoin Conference is dedicated to fostering a thriving Bitcoin ecosystem across Africa. This hackathon not only highlighted the immense talent within our community but also showcased innovative solutions to critical challenges like financial inclusion, cross-border transactions, and transparency,” Nabourema remarked.
The panel of judges comprised industry leaders and experts, including:
- Aaron Suplizio – Tech Partnerships, TBD
- Adewale Abati – Staff Developer Advocate, TBD
- Angie Jones – VP of Developer Relations, TBD
- Chris Maurice – CEO, Yellow Card
- Ebony Louis – Developer Advocate, TBD
- Kirah Sapong – Senior Software Engineer, Square
- Tony Tom – Head of Product, TBD
Despite the winding down of TBD’s operations, Block remains committed to open-source technology development. The decentralized identity initiatives from TBD now continue under the Decentralized Identity Foundation. Developers interested in contributing to Block’s open-source initiatives can explore the organization’s repositories on GitHub.
About Block, Inc.
Block, Inc. (NYSE: SQ), formerly known as Square, Inc., is a leading global technology company providing financial services through platforms such as Square, Cash App, TIDAL, and TBD. Block’s mission is to empower individuals and businesses by offering tools that enhance financial accessibility and economic participation.
About the Africa Bitcoin Conference (ABC)
The Africa Bitcoin Conference is the premier event for Bitcoin adoption and innovation on the continent. ABC unites experts, enthusiasts, and entrepreneurs to explore the role of Bitcoin in fostering economic development and financial empowerment across Africa.
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