In the wake of the 2008 financial crisis, a group of young Nigerian entrepreneurs came together to form The VFD Group, a company that is poised to become a major player in Nigeria’s financial sector. The founders of this company, Nonso Okpala, Adeniyi Adenubi, Mobolaji Adewumi, Gbenga Omolokun, Azubike Emodi and others, recognised the need for a new kind of financial institution in Nigeria, one that was nimble, innovative, and responsive to the needs of a rapidly changing market. But that was not their only innovation: they decided to build this firm together.

The Challengers is about the personal stories of these founders. What makes their story different from that of the businesspeople of just a generation prior? How did this company not only survive having so many “owners” but thrive because of it? This, in an environment as individualistic as the Nigerian business space, was a previously unheard-of occurrence. Eghosa Imasuen, author of Fine Boys, presents this tour de force of narrative nonfiction in a style uniquely his own.

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