Without disclosing the ticket size, Cairo Angels Syndicate Fund (CASF) has announced its investment in Finclusion Group. CASF is a micro venture capital that invests in early stage startups in the Middle East and Africa. This makes CASF’s fourth investment so far with three African recipients- including Egypt’s Nawah Scientific, Kenya’s fintech, FlexPay, and now Mauritius’ Finclusion Group- and a UAE entertainment marketplace startup QiDZ App. The newest startup in CASF’s portfolio is a pan-African neo-bank aiming to drive financial inclusion across the continent.
Timothy Nuy and Tonderai Mutesva launched the fintech in 2019 to make financial tools easily accessible throughout the African continent by leveraging their risk, credit, and technology expertise. The Mauritius-based startup currently has earned-wage access, Buy-Now-Pay-Later and credit offering.
With this new investment, the Group will continue with its plan to build Africa’s neo-bank and consequently gain a headstart in the BNPL market in Africa estimated to reach $7.18 billion in 2022.
Following a $20million funding in debt & equity in September, 2021 as well as a $20million raise from Lendable in January, the startup stated it has recorded a 140% monthly origination since its launch.
Finclusion Group has also established its presence in 5 countries including South Africa, Eswatini, Namibia, Kenya and Tanzania. The fintech has since grown to onboard 240,000 users with a $310 million loan disbursement.
A common trend in all of CASF’s investments is the non-disclosure of actual amounts though the funding is said to be within the ranges of $100,000–$250,000 in post-seed and pre-series A startups.
Speaking on the investment, Aly El Shalakany, CEO of the Cairo Angels Syndicate Fund, said, “Our mission is to invest and support incredible founders building digital platforms to solve essential problems. That is exactly why we decided to invest in Finclusion Group, who are delivering compelling solutions to underserved consumers who have historically had little or no access to credit.”
