Exclusive: The Peer will return $350,000 to investors after shutting down
- The Peer, a Nigeria-based API startup, shut down in April, returning about $350,000 to investors.
- The startup experimented with other products and business lines but decided not to pivot with investor money.
- The Peer's APIs allowed customers to move money between wallets, but African markets were not ready for wallet-to-wallet transactions at scale.
The shutdown of The Peer highlights the challenges faced by startups in finding product-market fit and the risks associated with early shutdowns. The decision not to pivot with investor money shows a responsible approach to managing funds. However, the failure to generate meaningful revenue and the market's unpreparedness for wallet-to-wallet transactions indicate the need for better market research and timing in launching new products.
