Visa, a global leader in digital payments, has announced significant investments in four pioneering African fintech start-ups that graduated from its Visa Africa Fintech Accelerator program. This announcement underscores Visa’s ongoing mission to advance financial inclusion and drive innovation across Africa’s rapidly expanding digital ecosystem. As part of a broader commitment to the region, Visa is dedicating resources to empower fintech startups that offer innovative financial solutions for consumers and businesses.
The Visa Africa Fintech Accelerator program is a three-month, intensive training, mentorship, and networking initiative designed to support start-ups from Seed to Series A funding stages. Since its launch in 2023, the program has accelerated 45 startups across Africa. The program provides participating companies with access to Visa’s extensive network, one-on-one mentorship with industry leaders, training in key areas such as digital payments and business development, and opportunities to secure strategic funding and partnerships.
The accelerator program’s third cohort is set to begin on November 5, 2024, in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, welcoming 20 innovative, pan-African digital enablers. The participants will undergo a rigorous 12-week program, aimed at equipping them with the tools and insights necessary to scale their solutions, especially within Africa’s diverse fintech landscape.
Graduates of the second cohort will have the opportunity to showcase their solutions to investors and business partners during a Demo Day scheduled for December 2, 2024, in Cape Town, South Africa.
The Four Start-Ups Receiving Visa’s Strategic Investment
Visa’s new investments focus on start-ups from its inaugural cohort that demonstrate unique solutions for diverse business needs across Africa:
- Workpay (Kenya) – Workpay offers an all-in-one cloud-based Human Resources (HR) and payroll management platform that manages every stage of the employee lifecycle, from payroll processing to time tracking, benefits administration, and performance management. Workpay’s platform is operational in more than 35 countries across Africa, supporting businesses by streamlining payroll, HR, and compliance processes. By investing in Workpay, Visa aims to support workforce optimization across Africa, aligning with broader goals of economic development and streamlined digital solutions for businesses.
- Oze (Ghana) – Oze provides small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) with digital record-keeping tools and embedded financial products to facilitate business management and access to capital. The platform includes a Loan Management System (LMS) powered by machine learning (ML) that enhances credit scoring and lending decisions for financial institutions, thus expanding access to credit for MSMEs. Oze’s ML-based credit scoring system is a crucial innovation for Africa’s growing MSME sector, where traditional credit scoring models often limit financing opportunities.
- OkHi (Nigeria) – OkHi addresses the critical challenge of accurate address verification in Africa, providing a smart digital address system that helps businesses verify, collect, and navigate to physical addresses more efficiently. This technology not only optimizes delivery and logistics for e-commerce and retail businesses but also enables access to essential financial services. OkHi’s digital addressing solution is especially transformative in regions with limited formal address systems, as it creates opportunities for inclusion in financial and other formalized systems.
- ORDA – A cloud-based restaurant management software, ORDA is digitizing over 1,500 restaurants across Nigeria, Kenya, and South Africa. It offers tools for order processing, inventory management, and financial services, providing restaurants with streamlined operational capabilities and driving business growth in Africa’s fast-paced food service industry. ORDA’s innovative approach aligns with Visa’s goals to digitize the operations of SMEs and enhance the overall payments ecosystem.
Driving Africa’s Digital Economy with Strategic Investments and Partnerships
Visa’s decision to invest in these four startups reflects its strategic focus on accelerating Africa’s digital transformation and supporting businesses that are foundational to the continent’s economic future. The investments are part of Visa’s ongoing pledge to invest $1 billion in Africa by 2027. This commitment, announced earlier, aims to address key challenges in the African market, such as access to digital payment solutions, financial inclusion, and the empowerment of local businesses.
Godfrey Sullivan, Senior Vice President of Products, Partnerships, and Digital Solutions for Visa CEMEA, emphasized the importance of these investments in shaping Africa’s digital future. “These investments mark a substantial step for Visa,” he stated. “We are once again standing behind our commitment to innovation in Africa, helping to shape the future of digital payments alongside some of the brightest fintech minds that the continent has to offer. Visa sees each investment as a unique opportunity to drive financial access and inclusion, and we are proud to support these start-ups as they realize their vision for a more connected Africa.”
Start-up Founders Embrace Visa’s Support
The founders of the four selected start-ups expressed their excitement and optimism regarding Visa’s investment. Meghan McCormick, CEO of Oze, commented, “This investment marks the latest pivotal moment in our journey, enabling us to scale our innovations to continue supporting MSMEs across Africa – something that both we and our shareholders are truly passionate about.”
Timbo Drayson, Co-Founder and CEO of OkHi, added, “We are thrilled to welcome Visa onboard as we continue to disrupt the industry and redefine what’s possible through our identity verification solutions. The future is bright, and partnerships like this help us take a step forward toward achieving our vision.”
Guy Futi, Co-Founder of ORDA, echoed this enthusiasm: “We are proud to have an established payments leader such as Visa be part of our growth journey. We see this investment as a mark of trust in our vision. We look forward to driving innovation together, one order at a time.”
Paul Kimani, Co-Founder and CEO of WorkPay, noted, “We are happy to have Visa in our corner. As a trusted leader in digital payments, Visa’s support pushes us toward our goal of delivering innovative solutions and streamlining backend processes for all.”
Expanding the Reach of African Fintech Innovation with AWS Support
The Visa Africa Fintech Accelerator program also enjoys support from Amazon Web Services (AWS), which offers free cloud services to program participants. AWS’s involvement enhances the program’s offerings by providing start-ups with access to cutting-edge cloud technology, enabling them to scale their solutions and improve operational efficiency. Visa’s partnerships with technology leaders like AWS help amplify the impact of the accelerator program, creating a robust support network for African fintech innovators.
Shaping the Future of Financial Services in Africa
Visa’s accelerator program and strategic investments are transformative steps toward building a digitally inclusive Africa, where technology and innovation can empower businesses and individuals alike. As Visa prepares for the program’s third cohort, the selected start-ups will have the opportunity to learn from Visa’s extensive experience in digital payments while positioning themselves for sustainable growth. Visa’s $1 billion commitment by 2027 signals a long-term strategy to cultivate Africa’s fintech ecosystem, advancing economic opportunities and financial access for millions.
As Africa’s fintech sector continues to expand, Visa’s investments provide a strong foundation for future growth, supporting start-ups that bring innovation and financial solutions to underserved communities.
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