The vacuum Lisk’s exit leaves in Africa’s Web3 funding

On October 31, Lisk, a Swiss-based Web3 infrastructure company, will cease its blockchain network and transition its remaining products and developers to Celo, a competing network. This marks the conclusion of a blockchain project that began in 2016, initially as a standalone network, before shifting to Ethereum. Lisk's strategic shift began in December 2025 when co-founder and CEO Max Kordek, along with former CTO Oliver Beddows, returned to the company.

Kordek stepped down as CEO in 2024 as the Lisk Foundation expanded its focus beyond blockchain infrastructure. The company subsequently consolidated several initiatives, including its research arm and a wallet product, to concentrate resources on Lisk's pivot away from blockchain infrastructure. By May, several roles had become redundant, as the company retreated from blockchain expansion.

Now, Lisk is developing a financial operations platform for businesses, focusing on accounts, payments, and approvals across fiat and stablecoin rails. This transition is more than a product shift; it signifies the end of a decade-long experiment in maintaining a blockchain network. In Africa, Lisk was one of the few ecosystem companies willing to back early-stage Web3 founders.

Despite raising $90.1 million across 28 deals in 2025, deal volume remained modest, with only a slight increase in the number of deals. Lisk's African expansion strategy aimed to attract developers, assist them in building, provide incentives for using its network, and foster network effects to support its native token, LSK. This token, once central to Lisk's blockchain ambitions, now signifies the conclusion of that chapter.