The growth of the fintech sector has been a meritorious one, not just globally, but in Africa too.
These efforts of individuals and groups have boosted the continent’s worldwide recognition in the sector. With this, African startups are gaining more ground and one of such successes is Chipper Cash and Esusu.
These two startups made it to the Forbes Fintech 50 list, 2022; Chipper Cash under Payments and Esusu under Personal Finance categories.
The Forbes Fintech 50 list 2022 comprised mostly new companies. “The result was a gusher of promising new businesses, with half of the 2022 Fintech 50 winners new to our annual list. That’s the most since our inaugural list in 2015, when all 50 were, by definition, first-timers. One new standout is Chipper Cash, a San Francisco-based startup launched by two twentysomethings from Uganda and Ghana that helps Africans transfer money cheaply, buy U.S. stocks and invest in crypto. Founded in 2018, it already has more than five million users and a $2.2 billion valuation. As always, our list is restricted to still-private companies with headquarters or substantial operations in the U.S.”
Chipper Cash
Chipper Cash makes sending and receiving money across Africa with free transfers and low cross-border rates.
The company asserts to have over 4 million users with 40,000 new users daily, has an average transaction time of 0.03 seconds and carries out 80,000 transactions per day.
Last year, the fintech closed a $100 million Series C round to introduce more products and grow its team. This followed its $30 million Series B led by Ribbit Capital and Jeff Bezos fund Bezos Expeditions, before which it closed a $13.8 million Series A round from Deciens Capital and other investors in June 2020.
Towards the end of last year, the startup raised a $150 million extension round which boosted its valuation to $2 billion and brought about it’s unicorn status.
Esusu
Esusu is a financial technology platform focused on helping individuals save money and build credit. The platform can be likened to the ‘ajo’ type of savings done within groups in Nigeria. It simplifies and automates thrift savings, collection, microcredit and financial inclusion.
Esusu became a unicorn this year, after raising $130 million in a Series B round led by SoftBank Vision Fund 2. Prior to this, the startup closed a $10 million Series A funding round, led by Motley Fool Ventures with Investment from Serena Williams’ Serena Ventures.
Founded in 2018 by Abbey Wemimo and Samir Goel, Esusu also provides rent reporting, rich property management analytics, and rental assistance unlocking financial access and stability for renters and property owners alike.
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