The Empower Africa Business Platform is Now Live !!!

Key Developments

IMF: Sub-Saharan Africa’s Economy to Grow by 4.0% in 2025, Adding $3.6 Billion in Output

Visa, a global payments powerhouse, has selected 22 fintech startups to join the fourth edition of its Africa Fintech Accelerator.

This 12‑week initiative, first launched in mid‑2023, offers intensive support through mentorship, product training, networking, and investor access.

The accelerator is part of Visa’s broader strategy to invest US $1 billion in Africa by 2027 to drive financial inclusion and strengthen the continent’s digital economy.

To date, 64 startups across the first three cohorts from 17 countries have participated, with a combined estimated portfolio value of US $1.1 billion.

Nearly two‑thirds (62 %) of those startups had women in leadership roles. Under the program, fintechs added over US $3 million in revenue during their training period, and alumni have since raised more than US $55 million in follow‑on funding.

Visa has already invested directly in several graduates from the first cohort, including Ghana’s Oze and Tunisia’s Konnect Networks.

Selected companies in cohort four address a range of fintech themes, including SME digitization, lending, cross‑border payments, payroll, B2B payments, AI‑driven transactions, social commerce, climate insurance, and neo‑banking.

The startups hail from 12 countries, led by Kenya (5), Nigeria (4), Egypt (2), Morocco (2), Zimbabwe (2), and one each from Ghana, Uganda, Mauritius, DRC, Botswana, Ivory Coast, and South Africa.

Cohort 4 startups include:

  • BigDot.ai (Zimbabwe): – helping SMEs reduce reliance on cash via digital blockchain‑based checkouts

  • ChatCash (Zimbabwe): – AI‑powered tool enabling sales and payments through messaging apps

  • Credify Africa (Uganda): – bridging trade finance gaps with access to capital, logistics, and payments

  • Flend (Egypt): – tech‑driven non‑bank finance solutions for SMEs

  • Hsabati (Morocco): – collecting operational data to support SMEs in securing bank financing

  • IPT Africa (Mauritius): – same‑day bulk and payroll payments with real‑time FX visibility

  • Lemonade Payments (Kenya): – white‑label blockchain wallets that protect user data

  • Maishapay (DRC): – provides payroll, digital payments, and POS services to B2B clients

  • MNZL (Egypt): – asset‑backed lending using home and auto equity

  • Motito (Ghana): – asset‑financing marketplace offering alternative payment plans

  • Muda (Kenya): – cross‑border asset exchange and stablecoin liquidity platform

  • mystocks.africa (Botswana): – unified trading across African stock exchanges

  • OKO Finance Ltd (Ivory Coast): – automated climate insurance for agribusiness risk reduction

  • PressPayNg (Nigeria): – offering banking, financing, savings, and insurance for education

  • Sevi (Kenya): – streamlining B2B payments and stock financing for small retailers

  • Shiga Digital Inc (Nigeria): – decentralized finance tools designed for African users

  • ShopOkoa (Kenya): – AI credit and payment platform for micro‑enterprises including savings and cashflow analytics

  • Startbutton (Nigeria): – merchant‑of‑record platform enabling compliant currency payments across borders

  • Twiva (Kenya): – social commerce enabling sellers to market via influencers

  • Vittas (Nigeria): – tailored finance and payment toolset for healthcare providers

  • Woliz (Morocco): – transforming nano‑stores into digital hubs with loyalty, payments, and AI operations

  • Zazu (South Africa): – a neobank offering business accounts, expense tracking, invoicing, and bookkeeping

This selection underlines Visa’s commitment to empowering fintech innovation across diverse solutions and geographies, building on the strong foundations laid by previous cohorts.

Visa continues to deliver tailored training, exposure to its global network, and the potential for direct investment or follow‑on capital via Demo Day.

Applications for the 2025 edition of the accelerator opened in early 2025 and remained open until March 15, 2025.

The hybrid program targets Seed to Series A startups with an operational MVP, traction in their markets, and either existing operations in Africa or plans to scale across the region.

Share :

You may also like...