Key Developments
16 Startups Selected to Join Visa's Diverse Second Cohort for Africa Fintech Accelerator Program
Visa has unveiled the African startups selected to join the second round of its continent-wide Fintech Accelerator program.
The program offers a concentrated 12-week period of personalized training and one-on-one mentorship for seed and Series A startups.
Participants gain exclusive access to resources, development opportunities, and potential funding.
This year’s cohort boasts a wider geographical reach, with startups from 28 African countries participating.
This year’s cohort boasts a wider geographical reach, with startups from 28 African countries participating.
This signifies a significant increase from the inaugural program, which included representatives from 18 nations.
Another noteworthy aspect is the rise in female leadership within the chosen startups. The percentage of female-led companies jumped from 43% in the first edition to a commendable 65% in the second.
The selected startups tackle a variety of challenges and opportunities in the African fintech landscape.
The selected startups tackle a variety of challenges and opportunities in the African fintech landscape.
Their solutions span neo-banking, merchant payments, credit scoring, risk and identity management, embedded finance, social commerce, and escrow services, to name a few.
“Visa is committed to fostering innovation while promoting financial inclusion and accessibility across the ecosystem,” said Aida Diarra, Visa’s Vice President and Head of Sub-Saharan Africa.
Launched in June 2023, the Visa Fintech Accelerator program aligns with Visa’s ongoing commitment to propel Africa’s digital economy. This commitment includes a $1 billion investment pledge by 2027 to revolutionize the continent’s payments landscape.
The virtual program culminates in a live Demo Day where startups showcase their innovations to key players in the ecosystem, potential investors, angel investors, and venture capitalists.
“Visa is committed to fostering innovation while promoting financial inclusion and accessibility across the ecosystem,” said Aida Diarra, Visa’s Vice President and Head of Sub-Saharan Africa.
Launched in June 2023, the Visa Fintech Accelerator program aligns with Visa’s ongoing commitment to propel Africa’s digital economy. This commitment includes a $1 billion investment pledge by 2027 to revolutionize the continent’s payments landscape.
The virtual program culminates in a live Demo Day where startups showcase their innovations to key players in the ecosystem, potential investors, angel investors, and venture capitalists.
Below are the selected startups:
- CheckUps Medical Hub (Kenya): Specializing in embedded finance within the healthcare sector.
- AzamPay (Tanzania): A B2B marketplace facilitating smoother transactions for businesses.
- Beem (Tanzania): Engaged in social commerce, Beem is enhancing how businesses interact with their consumers through social media platforms.
- Aku (Nigeria): A neo-banking platform providing innovative banking solutions.
- Cleva (Nigeria): Focuses on efficient money movement solutions to enhance financial transactions.
- Curacel (Nigeria): An insurance management startup that leverages technology to streamline claims and reduce fraud.
- E-doc Online (Nigeria): Specializing in open banking, they facilitate secure sharing of financial information.
- Raenest (Nigeria): Enhances money movement capabilities with their financial technology solutions.
- Bridgecard (Nigeria): Provides infrastructure to enable various financial services.
- Truzo (South Africa): Offers escrow services to secure transactions and enhance trust between parties.
- Bizao (Ivory Coast): A merchant payments solution aimed at simplifying the payment processes for businesses.
- Hub2 (Ivory Coast): Focuses on providing essential infrastructure to enable various fintech services.
- Chapa (Ethiopia): Provides merchant solutions to enhance business transactions.
- Vaultpay (Democratic Republic of Congo): Focuses on merchant payments to aid businesses in financial transactions.
- Iwomi Technologies (Cameroon): Specializes in money movement to facilitate better transaction processes.
- Proboutik (Cameroon): Another merchant payments solution aimed at improving business transactions.
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