Daniel Okafor

Founder & CEO

Tidewater Logistics, freight software for emerging markets

Operator turned founder. Making cross-border shipping as easy to book as a flight.

Singapore & Lagos

About

Daniel founded Tidewater in 2021 after years of watching small exporters lose weeks to paperwork. Today Tidewater books, tracks and clears freight for more than 4,000 businesses across nine countries.

Before founding, he ran operations at a Lagos freight startup and spent two years in strategy consulting. He splits his time between Singapore and Lagos and answers every customer email himself on Fridays.

Highlights

US$18M

Series A raised in 2025 to expand across Africa and Asia

countries with live shipping lanes

140

people on the team, from zero in 2021

Mentor, founder accelerator 2026

Coaching first-time founders on operations-heavy businesses

Experience

2021 – now

Founder & CEOTidewater Logistics, Singapore
2018 – 2021

Head of OperationsFreightly, Lagos
2016 – 2018

AssociateMeridian Partners, London

2014 – 2016

Supply Chain AnalystAtlas Consumer Goods, Lagos

Works on

Company Building
Operations
Logistics
Fundraising
Supply Chain
Marketplaces
Hiring
Go-to-Market

Education

2017 – 2018

INSEADMBA

2009 – 2013

University of LagosBEng, Mechanical Engineering