Adetunji Opayele, co-founder and chief technology officer (CTO) of Nigerian retail automation startup Bumpa, has died following a car accident on March 5, 2025.
Fondly called Teejay, Mr Opayele, a law graduate from Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), co-founded Bumpa in 2020 alongside Kelvin Umechukwu.
The duo, who met as students at OAU, collaborated on multiple business ventures before launching the startup, which helps small businesses automate their retail operations.
Confirming his death, Mr Umechukwu expressed deep grief over the loss, describing Opayele as more than just a business partner.
“This is honestly one of the most distressing things I’ve ever been through, and I imagine it’s the same for all of us who were close to Teejay.
“He wasn’t just a co-founder to me; he was my friend, my brother, my fight partner, and a brilliant engineer. Teejay was family to me, and this is honestly one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to deal with in life,” he said.
Bumpa, which raised $4 million in a 2022 seed round led by Base10 Partners, has grown to employ 40 people and has processed over N160 billion for its 60,000 onboarded SMEs.
The company made headlines in 2022 with its integration with Meta, which allowed merchants to manage Instagram, Facebook and WhatsApp DMs directly on Bumpa.
In 2023, the startup acquired beauty marketplace Fyne and in 2025 it acquired PaperCloud.
Speaking on Opayele’s impact, Opeyemi Awoyemi, Partner at Fast-Forward Fund, a Bumpa investor, described him as a visionary.
“Tunji loved life and lived it to the fullest. We had the privilege of working closely with him from day 0 at Bumpa, and his tenacity always stood out.
“He was deeply committed to his vision, yet he also had a curiosity for life beyond work—always exploring new ideas and passions. His energy and determination were truly inspiring, and he will be deeply missed,” Awoyemi said.
Before co-founding Bumpa, Opayele built a career in software development, working in both Nigeria and the U.S.
He held roles at Nigerian financial services provider E-Settlement and also founded web hosting company HostCabal.
In honour of his legacy, Bumpa announced plans to launch an AI assistant named Teejay, which will be embedded in the platform to provide business insights and solutions, continuing the late CTO’s problem-solving approach.
“Though his presence will be missed, we commit to keeping Teejay’s legacy alive by ensuring that the Bumpa app is fully functional and we continue to meet your business needs with it,” Umechukwu said in an email to customers on Wednesday.
