Wema Bank has announced a ₦120 million prize pool for the Grand Finale of Hackaholics 6.0, its flagship youth innovation challenge.
The announcement follows the emergence of 35 finalist teams from a nationwide regional pitch tour that drew 1,460 young innovators across seven cities.
The bank’s MD/CEO, Moruf Oseni, confirmed the prize breakdown, noting that the sum would be shared across multiple winning categories. In the Ideathon category, the first-place winner will receive ₦25 million, while the first and second runners-up will take home ₦20 million and ₦15 million respectively.
For the Hackathon, the first- through fourth-place teams will clinch ₦20 million, ₦15 million, ₦10 million and ₦5 million. As part of its commitment to increasing female participation in technology, Wema Bank also announced two ₦5 million awards for exceptional women-led innovations.
Oseni described Hackaholics as a testament to the creativity and problem-solving capacity of young Nigerians.
“Hackaholics continues to demonstrate the power of young people to shape the future of technology and nation-building,” he said. “We believe strongly in the ideas, resilience and ingenuity of Nigerian youth, and our investment in this initiative is a clear commitment to giving them the resources, mentorship and platform they need to transform their ideas into real-world solutions.”
The 35 finalists, comprising 17 Ideathon teams, 12 Hackathon teams and six women-led teams, were selected from a pitch circuit that spanned Ahmadu Bello University (ABU Zaria), Federal University of Technology Akure (FUTA), Lagos State University (LASU), University of Uyo (UNIUYO), Babcock University, University of Ibadan (UI), Veritas University Abuja, and Purple Academy Lagos.
Across these centres, participants engaged in intensive masterclasses, hands-on mentorship and structured pitch development sessions before appearing before panels of expert judges.
This year’s innovations cut across fraud detection, onboarding and customer experience, payments, credit management, financial literacy, social impact and AI-driven solutions. The 35 teams will now proceed to Lagos for a three-day mentorship and shortlisting programme ahead of the Grand Finale.
For many finalists, the announcement marks a major milestone. Medugu Wali, team lead of Tensor, the Hackathon winner at Veritas University, said their solution, “Wallet Padi”, was designed to simplify money management for Nigerians.
“Advancing to the pre-finale stage is a big step toward bringing that vision to life, and we appreciate Wema Bank for creating this platform,” he said.
Babcock University’s Ideathon winner, Akobundu Gift, who previously competed unsuccessfully in 2023, expressed renewed optimism. His startup, Chao, began as a campus food-delivery idea.
“Reaching the Hackaholics finals again reflects how much we’ve evolved,” he said. “We’re grateful to Wema Bank for the opportunity.”
At Veritas University, Eutopia.ai founder, Ogunlana Tosin, described her women-led team’s victory as proof of resilience.
“Not making it at Babcock was painful, but we took the feedback, refined our solution and returned stronger,” she said. “I’m truly grateful to Wema Bank for championing women empowerment and supporting women-led innovation through initiatives like SARA.”
Launched in 2019, Hackaholics has grown into one of Nigeria’s largest youth innovation platforms, drawing more than 12,000 applicants across 15 schools and awarding over $300,000 in funding and support. Between 2023 and 2024 alone, ₦75 million went to women-led teams.
This year, the bank deepened its commitment through the Hackaholics Accelerator and Collective Program, offering continued support to founders beyond the competition.
The Hackaholics 6.0 Grand Finale will convene investors, policymakers, technology leaders and the innovation community in Lagos for live pitches, product exhibitions and the unveiling of the next generation of transformative Nigerian startups.