Leofied is wooing African freelancers with 10% commission, already has 2,000 users

Have you tried doing a quick scan of your immediate environment for individuals passionate about fixing things lately? How many individuals did you find? Jonathan Omonigho, CEO at Leofied, will fall under the radar.

Growing up in a Nigerian home placed some responsibilities on young Omonigho. But he took on each task with pride, constantly adopting simpler ways to get them done.

“I have always been tech-inclined even from a tender age. Not only was I the handyman around the house, I always looked for simple methods to complete tasks”, Omonigho said of his inclination to tech and solving problems to Technext.

Journey to Tech 

Omonigho’s early childhood experience with solving problems in his Nigerian home would eventually help to bring him closer to where he is making an impact today: Leofied.

The first stop on his tech journey was at a small hub where people could purchase mobile phones and other gadgets at affordable prices. Soon, he moved on to create an online cryptocurrency portal that made it easy for anyone to trade coins and gift cards.

Now, we are adding the freelance platform to it; to create easy access to job opportunities for freelancers.

Jonathan Omonigho, CEO Leofied

From helping people purchase phones and gadgets with ease to enabling crypto trading and where he is at today, the CEO says he’s had to work twice as hard to be better and create solutions for Africa and Africans.

Omonigho told Technext, “The most important thing I have learned and keep learning is that the world is evolving and everything moves very fast. Sadly, Nigeria and a lot of third world countries seem to be moving in the opposite direction and lagging behind their contemporaries. So as a tech-inclined person, I know I have to work twice as hard to create innovations that is suitable for the clime.”

For Omonigho, the brightest moment in tech so far is his creation of the Leofied platform.

The minute I conceived the Leofied idea. I just knew it was going to be a game changer.

Jonathan Omonigho, CEO Leofied

Creating Leofied

Leofied is an online community that connects consumers and businesses to freelance service professionals.

According to Omonigho, three factors influenced the creation of Leofied, including unemployment, under-employment, and the state of the nation.

With the rate of unemployment and inflation in the country, a lot of people are finding it difficult to cope with the remuneration from one job. (That’s even the ones that have jobs) Leofied was borne out of the sheer need to aid people get a major and another source(s) of income from the comfort of their homes.

Jonathan Omonigho

As early as February this year, Statista predicted that the unemployment rate in Nigeria will reach 33 percent.

This worrisome stat makes the platform’s work important, although it has to wrestle with Upwork, Fiverr and Terawork for market share. Freelancers, the targets of these platforms, will always seek platforms that give them the best value.

Attracting African freelancers

The Leofied platform operates a system that makes it easy for freelancers to land gigs and provide value to clients. Another catch is the 10% commission capped on each gig, one of the lowest and most competitive rates in the freelance market.

“We provide jobs and gigs to the freelancers regularly. We also boast of one of the lowest commission rates. We cap our commission at 10% depending on the gigs. Our platform is also easy to navigate and we treat each consumer well,” Omonigho spoke of the benefits freelancers get when they get onboard Leofied.

Since launching in May, the platform has created opportunities for 2,000 freelancers to offer value and earn.

Value-driven partnerships

To sustain its presence and impact in the Nigerian and African freelance markets, Leofied is constantly working on partnerships with high-end employers, small businesses and reward platforms. All to the advantage of the skilled freelancer.

The platform is also working with the government to create more sustainable job opportunities for the people.

“We are in partnership with both high-end employers and small businesses who need skilled freelancers to function. We have also partnered with reward platforms such as EKOTOKEN to reward and encourage freelancers on our platform. We are currently in talks with the government as well on how to create more sustainable job opportunities for the populace.

“We bring an ecosystem of value both for the employers, who need skilled hands for either a limited or permanent basis; and the freelancer who has no information on how to access these available jobs and gigs prior.”

Biggest challenge

Omonigho said the biggest challenge for the business so far comes from the freelancers.

“The most prominent challenge is that of patience and honesty. People want to get rich overnight and in the process, some freelancers try to be dishonest and greedy.”

Notwithstanding, the CEO offered that Leofied is equipped with an internal process to “checkmate this.” 

The long game

Leofied wants to be a household name in the gig economy. Omonigho believes the platform has the potential to get there.

“It (Leofied) will definitely be a household name. When you create value, automatically, you get consumers. We are changing the face of freelancing across the continent.”

For a platform that wants to be “the number 1 stop for well paid gigs across Africa”, it becomes interesting to note Leofied’s footprints in the African freelance market over the next few years.