Mewi Capital, Ivorian startup specializing in financial education and wealth management, has obtained the patent from the African Intellectual Property Organization (OAPI) forDrassy, its educational board game for stock market and investment initiation. A major recognition that establishesDrassy as a full-fledged African innovation.
A patent that recognizes an innovation born in Ivory Coast
It is a milestone that few African educational startups have crossed. Mewi Capital, an Ivorian startup founded by Maeva Gabré Tetegan and Yves Tetegan, has just obtained the OAPI patent for Drassy, officially recognized as the first African educational board game for stock market and investment initiation.
This intellectual protection, issued by the African Intellectual Property Organization covering 17 member countries, marks a symbolic and strategic step for the company. It attests that Drassy is an original creation, protected at the continental level, and that it is now part of the African intellectual heritage.
Originally: a concerning observation about financial education in Africa
When Maeva Gabré Tetegan and Yves Tetegan imagined Drassy, their starting point was not a product, but a problem. In West Africa, the vast majority of citizens, regardless of social class, consider the stock market as a universe reserved for an elite. Not due to lack of intelligence, but due to lack of educational tools adapted to their cultural and economic realities.
In addition, there is a more concerning phenomenon: due to lack of solid financial knowledge, many savers turn to dubious investment structures, with promises of huge returns, at the expense of real, productive, and secure investments that the stock market offers at all income levels.
It is to address this reality that Drassy was designed and launched in December 2023, with a clear ambition: to democratize financial and stock market culture through the game.
Drassy : how does it work?
Drassy is an educational board game designed for 2 to 6 players or pairs, accessible from the age of 10, with a game duration ranging from 30 minutes to 2 hours. Its principle is simple: each player receives 20,000 Drass (the game’s fictional currency) and must buy, sell, and negotiate financial products on a board representing a stock exchange.
The game features 16 companies from 6 different sectors, including media, agri-food, industry, and catering, as well as two bonds, one public and one private. Through Action, Bonds, Chance, and Information cards, players concretely discover the fundamental mechanisms of financial markets: buying, selling, dividends, interests, portfolio management, and market analysis.
What sets Drassy apart from other existing educational tools is its deeply African roots. The cultural references, represented sectors (New Mici Embaci, Trace Academia, Africafé, Miadjoe, ANKA, etc.), financial mechanisms addressed, everything has been designed to resonate with the daily reality of African players, while remaining faithful to the real standards of the financial markets in the UEMOA region.
A complementary duo of founders
Behind Drassy, there is an Ivorian couple with complementary expertise. Maeva Gabré Tetegan, holder of an Executive Master in Corporate Finance from ISM Paris and with 8 years of experience in the financial market, leads the marketing and communication strategy of Mewi Capital. She ensures that Drassy benefits from a strong and engaging image, while raising public awareness about the importance of financial education.
Yves Tetegan, on the other hand, brings over 10 years of technical expertise in Anglo-Saxon and Pan-African financial institutions. Holder of a Bachelor’s degree in Finance from Temple University (USA), a Master’s degree in Management of International Organizations from CEFAM (France), and certificates from Yale and Harvard, he is responsible for the financial rigor of the game.
An ambition that goes beyond Ivory Coast
Since its launch, Drassy is available in Ivory Coast through the Librairie de France network, the PROSUMA network, Super U Zone 4, and direct sales, as well as in Senegal (Librairie 4 Vents), Burkina Faso (Librairie Mercury and Jeunesse d’Afrique), Benin (SONAEC, LBU, and Savoir d’Afrique), and Togo. The game is offered at 15,000 FCFA.
With the OAPI patent, Mewi Capital aims to accelerate its deployment across West Africa. The company targets families, schools, and businesses wishing to integrate financial education into their training programs or team-building activities.
Beyond the product, it is a vision that Mewi Capital intends to carry: that of an Africa that educates its own investors, produces its own financial education tools, and actively prepares the next generation to participate in the economic growth of the continent.
