Moniepoint CEO gets recognition

Moniepoint’s Co-founder and Group Chief Executive Officer, Tosin Eniolorunda

Moniepoint’s Co-founder and Group Chief Executive Officer, Tosin Eniolorunda, has been named among the 100 rising leaders featured in TIME100 Next 2026, the annual list published by TIME magazine.

 The fintech giant disclosed this in a statement on Monday, saying Eniolorunda was recognised for his role in building financial infrastructure that has expanded access to financial services in Nigeria.

 Eniolorunda is the only African among the business, technology and artificial intelligence leaders featured on this year’s list, according to the statement.

 The list recognises emerging leaders across business, technology, politics, science, sport and culture whom TIME considers to be shaping the next generation of leadership.

 Moniepoint, founded in 2015, became a unicorn in 2024 and has grown to serve more than 20 million businesses and individuals, according to the company. It also operates an agency banking network covering all 774 local government areas in Nigeria.

 The recognition adds to a series of recent honours for executives and the company. On September 22, Moniepoint’s Co-founder and Chief Technology Officer, Felix Ike, was named to TIME’s inaugural Executives of the Year list for Tech and Data, while Moniepoint was named one of TIME’s 100 Most Influential Companies in 2025.

The Chairman of Heirs Holdings and Founder of the Tony Elumelu Foundation, Tony Elumelu, wrote Eniolorunda’s citation for the TIME100 Next recognition, the statement indicated.

 Elumelu, who was named to the TIME100 list in 2020, described Eniolorunda as a young entrepreneur who “grew up without a silver spoon but still dared to dream”, according to the statement.

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 Eniolorunda said the recognition belonged to the Moniepoint team and the millions of businesses and individuals using its services.

 “I am grateful to TIME for this recognition, which belongs first to the Moniepoint team, whose discipline and sacrifice built this company, and to the millions of businesses and individuals across the continent who trust us with their livelihoods every day,” he said.

 “Our mission has always been to deliver financial happiness, and this honour renews our commitment to building with even greater rigour and care for the people we serve.”

 Eniolorunda also thanked Elumelu for his support of African enterprise, saying the continent’s future would be shaped by its people if they had access to the right tools and opportunities.

 TIME launched the TIME100 Next list in 2019 to recognise emerging figures it considers influential in shaping the future across different sectors.

 This year’s honourees include actor Joey King, NBA player Tyrese Maxey and Filipino tennis player Alexandra Eala. Kenya’s Wawira Njiru, founder of Food4Education, is also among the African honourees.

 TIME is scheduled to celebrate the 2026 honourees at its TIME100 Next event in New York on October 29.