First, you could have mentioned both of them in the same comment without having to duplicate your post.
Secondly, this is not because they raised money.
Let’s look at the most “respected” startups in the Nigerian ecosystem.
Iroko TV - There is nothing to be said here. They have not reached their goal. Both @Jason_Igwe_Njoku and the entire ecosystem know this. However, they are doing extremely well and are worthy to be praised.
Hotels.ng - This is not about them raising money. Not at all. They do what they do well, they continue to search for improvement. Also, the community really appreciates the effort @mark puts into developing the ecosystem.
Paystack - They made the one thing that was so complicated look so simple. They ushered in a wave of fintech startups. They have been loved and respected even before they raised money or got into YC. This demonstrates that we do not admire them because they raised money, but they raised money because they possessed the attributes we admire.
TechCabal (Big Cabal) - I seem to remember that they raised money sometime this year (or was is last year) but we do not really remember that. We admire their work. TC, Radar, Daily Digest, e.t.c. This is also not about raising money.
Sharphire - I cannot remember any fund raises from them (may or may not be present) but they have a range of wonderful startups. Piggybank, PushCV, FrontDesk, e.t.c While they are not in a lot of frequent discussions, it is clear that the community loves their work. You can take a look at the numerous compliments towards @somtoifezue
Konga - They kick started the startup system in Nigeria. While they may not be the first, they were the most prominent and drew a lot of attention. At the moment, they usually have some bad press due to fulfilments, customer service e.t.c. However, I believe they still command a lot of respect.
On the other side, there are startups that raise money but are not spoken about or “hyped”
Jumia - With all their cash, I think they have more bad press than good.
Tolet.com.ng - They raised $1.2m this year, but are still not in a lot of conversations. No good press, no bad press.
There was the fintech bank backed by Dangote. I have even forgotten their name
There are many others who are even hard to remember because raising money does not equal respect.
I don’t like when people assume that the respect they are given is because they raised money. This is not true.
These companies take a lot of time to build reputations that cause us to love (or hate) them, and these are just a few examples that show that it has nothing to do with the amount of money raised.