MaxAB-Wasoko, the result of last year’s merger between North Africa’s MaxAB and East Africa’s Wasoko, has announced the acquisition of Fatura, a B2B e-marketplace based in Egypt. The acquisition, from EFG Finance (a subsidiary of EFG Holding), positions MaxAB-Wasoko as the most aggressive player in Africa’s fragmented e-commerce and supply chain space.
In addition to acquiring the platform, EFG Finance now becomes a significant shareholder in the combined company and secures a seat on the MaxAB-Wasoko board, signaling long-term commitment to shaping the company’s strategy going forward.
What This Means for Africa’s Informal Retail Economy
At its core, this is not just a strategic acquisition—it is a signal of intent. MaxAB-Wasoko is building the continent’s largest digital infrastructure for informal retail, linking supply chains, fintech solutions, and e-commerce platforms under a single super app.
By acquiring Fatura, which had onboarded over 626 wholesalers across 16 Egyptian cities—including five cities where MaxAB-Wasoko had no prior footprint—the company is tightening its grip on the Egyptian retail sector. This expanded reach is key in a region where informal trade dominates and fragmented supply chains make it difficult for retailers to access reliable inventory.
From Merger to Marketplace Expansion
The MaxAB-Wasoko merger in 2024 brought together two heavyweights in African commerce: MaxAB’s dominance in Egypt and Morocco and Wasoko’s extensive presence in Kenya, Rwanda, and Tanzania. Now, with Fatura in the fold, the company is pushing forward with a consolidation strategy that blends technology, logistics, and financial services.
Fatura operates an asset-light model, which complements MaxAB-Wasoko’s more vertically integrated supply chain—where the company controls everything from procurement to last-mile delivery. With the integration of Fatura’s marketplace, MaxAB-Wasoko is unlocking greater product diversity while maintaining control over speed and service.
Embedded Finance as the Growth Engine
But the real edge may not just be logistics or product breadth—it’s embedded finance. One of the key value propositions MaxAB-Wasoko is doubling down on is access to working capital for retailers through buy-now-pay-later models and embedded credit solutions.
The acquisition of Fatura aligns perfectly with this vision. The company says its fintech arm now finances over 9% of all e-commerce sales, a figure that is expected to rise as it expands credit services into Morocco and, potentially, other countries. Credit access allows small and medium-sized retailers to stock more inventory, increase revenue, and reduce stock-outs—a chronic issue in informal markets.
Strong Near-Term Projections
MaxAB-Wasoko expects the Fatura marketplace to contribute around 25% of its Egypt revenue by the end of 2025. With the integration already underway, and expansion to additional African countries on the horizon, the company is banking on Fatura’s lightweight, scalable model to deliver both topline growth and operational efficiencies over the next 12–18 months.
For EFG Finance, the move is equally strategic. As CEO Aladdin ElAfifi said in the announcement, the deal supports EFG Holding’s push into digital finance and shows confidence in the MaxAB-Wasoko model as a driver of inclusive economic growth.
Why This Acquisition Matters
This deal is important for three major reasons:
- Pan-African Scale: It accelerates the formation of a continental e-commerce and supply chain powerhouse—something that has remained elusive despite the promise of Africa’s digital economy.
- Ecosystem Thinking: It brings together inventory management, fintech, logistics, and retail digitization into one mobile-first platform, reflecting the trend toward super apps across Africa.
- Financial Inclusion: With embedded financial services, MaxAB-Wasoko is offering what banks often can’t—short-term credit tailored to informal retailers’ needs and repayment capacities.
What Comes Next
If MaxAB-Wasoko can pull off its integration plans without losing operational efficiency, it may soon emerge as the dominant retail enabler across Francophone, Anglophone, and Arabophone Africa. The company’s current presence—spanning Morocco, Egypt, Kenya, Rwanda, and Tanzania—gives it a unique regional advantage few players can match.
As we wrote in a previous article exploring the Wasoko-MaxAB merger, “Africa’s next e-commerce giant may not look like Amazon. It may look like this—hyper-local, credit-first, mobile-powered.”
With Fatura now part of the story, MaxAB-Wasoko is not just scaling. It’s positioning itself as the continent’s one-stop shop for the future of informal trade.
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