Ezra Olubi, co-founder and Chief Technology Officer of Paystack, has been suspended. The allegation is sexual misconduct involving a subordinate, and it comes after the resurfacing of old tweets that are deeply disturbing. These messages, written over a decade ago, reveal a pattern of thought so alarming that it is impossible to ignore. This is not a story of youthful indiscretion. It is a story of repeated lapses in judgment and of a moral compass in disarray.
On paper, Olubi is everything the tech world admires. He holds a B.Sc. in Computer Science from Babcock University. He rose through the ranks from IT administrator to CTO, co-founded a fintech company that scaled across Africa, raised millions in funding, and was eventually acquired by Stripe for $200 million. In public perception, he was a visionary, a mentor, and a disruptor. Yet intelligence and achievement alone do not absolve a person from moral responsibility.
The tweets that have reemerged are shocking in both content and intention. In May 2011, he wrote, “Monday will be more fun with an ‘a’ in it. Touch a coworker today. Inappropriately.” Other posts contained sexualized references to minors, remarks about photographing coworkers’ thighs, and explicit sexualized anime content. These were not careless mistakes; they were deliberate expressions of thought that reveal a remarkable disregard for decency and the rights of others. They were signals of a mindset that treated audacity as a shield for misconduct.
Psychologically, the contradiction is stark. Olubi is capable of designing secure and complex financial systems, yet he publicly indulged in thought and expression that betray a lack of empathy, boundaries, and ethical awareness. The very mind that built a digital empire also rationalized the objectification of others. That is a dangerous combination. Now, the consequences are visible. The digital signals, once ignored, have aligned with real-world allegations, producing a reckoning that cannot be dismissed.
There is a lesson here for young Nigerians who believe that genius excuses deviance. For too long, we have celebrated intelligence and audacity while turning a blind eye to character. Brilliance may win funding, accolades, and headlines, but it does not shield one from the consequences of unethical behavior. One can build a company that processes millions of dollars and still fail spectacularly as a human being. Professional achievement does not erase moral failure.
For his generation, this should be a warning. Tech culture often equates risk-taking with leadership and equates audacity with genius. Olubi exemplifies the dark side of that philosophy. Ambition without ethics produces not innovation but harm. The belief that one can act without consequence because of talent is a delusion. History, society, and those affected by misconduct eventually demand accountability.
Olubi’s suspension also reflects on the broader ecosystem. Companies, investors, and mentors must ask themselves why warning signs were overlooked. Nigerian culture prizes ingenuity, but it also prizes respect, empathy, and integrity. Leadership is not just about building systems; it is about creating safe environments and modeling ethical behavior. When the leader fails in character, the consequences ripple through every layer of the organization.
Intelligence cannot substitute for conscience. Achievement cannot substitute for morality. Ezra Olubi’s case is proof that power, visibility, and technical skill do not excuse poor judgment. He built an empire, but he failed as a human being. The lessons are clear. Young men and women who idolize audacity over ethics must reconsider their assumptions. Genius does not require moral flexibility, and influence without conscience is a liability.
