01
Funding
Funding that moves with your vision.
Three grants for three stages: starting out, growing, or waiting on a big invoice. You compete on the strength of your business, not on who you know.
Capital for the moment it matters.
Funding · Access · Mentorship
Build the business that changes everything.
Funding, access, and mentorship for African founders ready to move from idea to traction. Grants you don't pay back, mentors who have run a business themselves, and introductions that lead somewhere.
- Grants you don't pay back
- A person reads every application
- Most decisions within 7 business days
- Free to join
For African foundersPowered by Pecan
Funding
Capital for the moment it matters
Access
The right introduction
Mentorship
Founders who have been there
- Capital for the moment it matters
- Access that opens real doors
- Mentorship from founders who have been there
- No black box. Just a clear path forward
- A person reads every application
- Free to join
- Catch the moment
- Funding · Access · Mentorship
Sound familiar?
You know this feeling.
Running a business here means solving problems nobody warned you about, and usually solving them alone. This is where Kyros comes in.
KYROSThe Bridge Grant. Working capital for the gap between today and your next big invoice.
Bridge GrantKYROSThree grants, one short application. You get a clear answer: yes, not yet, or a pointer to something that fits better.
The three grantsKYROSMentors who have run a business like yours, and short courses on the things you would otherwise Google at midnight.
MentorshipKYROSIntroductions to buyers, distributors and partners who work in your sector.
Get connectedKYROSA person reads every application, and we tell you what happened, whichever way it goes.
How it works
How Kyros works
The support system your business has been waiting for.
Money you don't pay back. Mentors who have actually run a business. Introductions that used to depend on who you knew. Kyros puts the three in one place, so you stop chasing each one alone.
02
Access
Access that opens real doors.
Buyers, distributors, partners, pilots. The introductions that usually only happen in rooms you were never invited into.
Built for founders with something worth buying.
03
Mentorship
Mentorship from founders who have been there.
Not theory. The real conversation about pricing, hiring, cash, and what to do next, with someone who has done it before.
Free for Kyros-backed founders.
Backed by mentors who have worked in or own these institutions
- Pecan
- IFC
- Fidelity Bank
- Access Bank
- HerVest
- Dangote
Grants
Capital you don't pay back.
Springboard, Builder, Bridge. One of them fits where your business is today. Apply, and we tell you which one, plainly. You never pay a grant back.
01Springboard GrantFor aspiring founders ready to begin. First grant, first traction, first proof.Learn more
02Builder GrantFor early traction with a clear next milestone. For the founder with customers and a roadmap.Learn more
03Bridge GrantWorking capital, fast. For the gap between today and your next big invoice.Learn more
Access
The right introduction can change the next six months of your business.
The buyer who could take your whole stock. The distributor in the next city. The corporate that needs exactly what you make. You do not need a bigger network. You need the right three people.
Get
connected
One founder
Ready, with something worth buying.
- A buyerFirst orders, then repeat orders
- A mentorSomeone who has run your kind of business
- A corporate opportunityPilots and supplier lanes
From founder
to founder
Mentorship
Stop building alone.
Once you join the community, we match you with a mentor who has run a business like yours. Someone who has made the mistake you are about to make, and who picks up the phone.
Sectors our mentors operate in
- Retail
- Fintech
- Fashion
- Logistics
- Food & Beverage
- Supply chain
- Creative industries
- Agribusiness
Registration only. Matching happens after review.
Programme levels
Where ambition meets structure.
Three levels. Everyone starts on the same ground, and where you go next depends on where the business already is, not on who you know.
Who it is for
All participants, regardless of industry or experience.
The focus
The basics every business needs, done properly: how to read your own numbers, how to lead people, how to run the day-to-day without it running you.
What you leave with
Discipline and systems for growth.
The founder journey
Exactly what happens after you apply.
No black box. Just a clear path forward. Every stage is published, and you hear from us at each one.
Trust and governance
No black box.
Just a clear path forward. You always know who is reading, what they look for, and why they decided what they decided. Published criteria, a named panel, and outcomes reported in public.
Published selection criteria
We publish the criteria, and anonymised winning applications, so you can see what a strong application looks like before you write yours.
A named decision panel
A standing panel of founders and operators reads every application. Panel bios are published by expertise.
Conflict-of-interest policy
Time-bound decisions, and a written policy covering any panel member with an interest in an applicant.
Feedback either way
Unsuccessful applicants receive feedback notes and a route onward, not a form rejection.
Data handling
All applicant data is encrypted at rest and in transit. We don't sell your data. We share it only where we are legally required to.
Outcomes in public
Periodic outcomes reports with real metrics, not vanity metrics.
Outcomes
What we will publish, and when.
The first cohort is in progress. We would rather show you nothing than show you numbers we cannot stand behind. Here is exactly what the first report will carry.
Cohort one in progress
- North star
Time to first purchase order
Our north-star measure. Days from activation to a founder's first confirmed order.
Grants awarded
Count and stage mix across Springboard, Builder and Bridge.
Businesses supported
Founders who completed a programme level or a mentorship cohort.
Repeat orders
Founders who converted a first order into a second.
Learn
The things founders Google at midnight.
Short, practical courses on cash flow, pricing, hiring, tax and building a brand. Free, about five minutes each, and built for how African businesses actually run.
13 courses
5 minutes each · Free
Questions founders actually ask
Straight answers.
The things people ask us on WhatsApp before they apply.
Do I have to pay the grant back?
No. Grants are non-repayable. We may follow up to see what you built, and we ask you to deploy the funds for what you applied for.
Who actually reads my application?
A standing panel of founders and business operators. No bots, no black box. We may come back with a question.
How long until I hear back?
Most decisions land within 7 business days of a complete application. Bridge moves faster. You hear from us at every stage.
What if I don't get it?
You get feedback and a route onward, not a form rejection. That might be a mentorship cohort, a different grant, or Learn and Tools while you build.
What does it cost to join?
Nothing. Membership is free. Once you join, you can apply for grants, register for mentorship, and take the courses.
My business is not registered yet. Can I still apply?
Yes, for Springboard. No registration is required. Builder and Bridge ask for basic business details.
The founder
20 years moving capital to where it works.
African founders have never lacked talent or hustle. They have lacked a fair process, honest capital, and people who pick up the phone. Kyros is the system I wish they already had.
Mopejuola Faloye-AtungbayilaFounder, Kyros
Kyros was founded by Mopejuola Faloye-Atungbayila, a finance professional with more than two decades in treasury, banking, and financial management, and a long record of opening financial access to the people the system overlooks.
She is Group Treasurer of Oando Plc and the founder of Pecantrust Microfinance Bank, which she built to expand financial access for underserved SMEs and individuals in Nigeria. She holds a BSc in Accounting and an MSc in Finance from the University of London, is a Fellow of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (FCCA), a member of the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria, and holds a Fintech certification from Harvard University.
- Group Treasurer, Oando Plc
- Founder, Pecantrust MFB
- FCCA
- Harvard Fintech
- ACTN Governing Council
- NAMB Lagos, Vice Chairman
Applications open
Every big business starts with a first step.
The application takes about 10 minutes, and a person reads it.