Nicolai Eddy — Operator, Builder, and Distance Runner

I build companies and run marathons. Currently between Switzerland and Kenya.

Zürich · Nairobi · San Francisco

I'm currently building at Nala and Rafiki, a cross-border fintech moving money in and out of Africa and Asia. I've spent the last seven years operating across finance, compliance, revenue, product, partnerships, and engineering as the company grew to ~150 people across 16 countries.

Before Nala, I was at Morningstar in Chicago, where I started after graduating from Bard. I'm Swiss-American — my mother is from Switzerland; my father taught at a Waldorf school in Detroit, where I grew up. I came into fintech sideways, through Y Combinator's W19 batch and a one-way ticket to Tanzania in November 2019.

I'm married to Atieno Onyango, founder of Tieno Studio, an interior design and architecture practice in Nairobi. We split our time between Kenya, Switzerland, and occasional stretches in SF.

Currently

Updated June 2026.

Building at Nala / Rafiki — most excited about new global stablecoin accounts that we're launching.
Training for my next marathon, late 2026. Coach: Zane Robertson in Iten, Kenya.
Based in Zurich through autumn 2026, with stretches in Nairobi and San Francisco.

Work

Nala/2019–present/Co-founder, COO
Cross-border remittance from the diaspora into Africa and Asia. ~150 people, 16 countries. Series A led by Acrew Capital.
Rafiki/2024–present/Co-founder, COO
Fiat and stablecoin rails for Africa and Asia.
Morningstar/2014–2019/Investment research
Building indexes that served as the basis of investment products. First job out of Bard. The pre-startup era.

Running

I started running seriously after a string of injuries — motorcycle accident, ankle surgery, achilles, MRSA. Stockholm 2023 was the comeback. I train wherever I can but ideally at home in Kenya. I'm building toward my next marathon in late 2026.

Running is also where I've done some of my best documentary work.

Race	Year	Result
Berlin Marathon	September 2019	2:51:28
Reading Half Marathon	April 2023	1:14:50
Stockholm Marathon	June 2023	2:46:56

Behind the Tape — A documentary I co-produced about the elite marathon runners of Iten, Kenya. Completed, unreleased. Release news coming.

Director and cofounder: Michelle Katami.

Writing & Press

Recent press

Writing

Home

Atieno and I got engaged in July 2024 and married in June 2025. Her work — Tieno Studio — is its own thing, and worth following independently.

→ tieno.studio