Nigeria’s creator economy may finally be coming of age
Nigeria’s creator economy is maturing, with creators earning meaningful income and platforms multiplying, signalling a growing and vibrant digital ecosystem.
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Over the past year, four Nigerian startups collectively paid out more than ₦15 billion to creators, a milestone that would have seemed improbable just a few years ago. Ten-year-old Selar remains the industry’s leading light, paying out more than ₦14 billion to creators in 2025 alone and now boasting nearly 400,000 creators on its platform. <br />
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But Selar is no longer alone.<br />
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Nestuge, founded in 2023, paid out ₦1.7 billion to creators in 2025 and now hosts over 7,000 creators selling a diverse range of digital products. Meanwhile, Youfanly and AllAccessFans paid out ₦450 million and ₦1.9 billion — respectively, further underscoring the growing appetite for creator-led monetisation platforms in the country.<br />
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Together, these numbers suggest a sector that is no longer aspirational and is, for the first time, showing signs of durability.<br />
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Selar CEO Douglas Kendyson points to two key catalysts behind this growth. The first is COVID-19. Lockdowns forced millions of people indoors and disrupted traditional sources of income, compelling many to experiment with alternative ways of earning money online. Crucially, those habits did not disappear when restrictions were lifted. <br />
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The second catalyst, Kendyson argues, is the visibility of earlier digital creators who proved that selling knowledge and digital products could be a viable business. To be clear, digital content creators are not new in Nigeria. For years, the space was dominated by information-selling gurus who relied heavily on affiliate marketing to generate revenue.<br />
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But that era was often met with scepticism. For many observers, the business models were opaque and occasionally dubious. In that context, Selar’s decision to be transparent about creator earnings and the quality of its creators (many are professionals) helped change perceptions. <br />
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Public payout milestones created both trust and a sense of possibility. That shift is evident in Selar’s trajectory from paying out roughly $1 million (₦435 million at the 20...
