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kenza_abdelhaq

AgroCenta raises US$ 790k of Pre-Series A Working Capital & Development Funding From Sh... - 0 views

medium.com/...unding-from-shell-7db364912b9f

AgroCenta Ghana Specialized financing

shared by kenza_abdelhaq on 13 Feb 21 - No Cached
  • Francis Obirikorang, AgroCenta’s CEO and Co-Founder Michael Ocansey highlight the importance and criticality of this investment: “This is a significant milestone for AgroCenta, having the support of leading institutions, particularly with the COVID-19 backdrop, underlining the strength of AgroCenta and the importance of its mission. The demand for agricultural raw materials from offtakers in the brewery, manufacturing and consumer sector is increasing exponentially because of the easing of the COVID-19 restrictions that were put in place by the government of Ghana, hence this capital injection will help to secure purchases at fair and transparent prices from smallholders — a much needed lifeline for many who are at the proverbial bottom of the pyramid”.
    • nouhaila_zaki
      nouhaila_zaki on 13 Feb 21
       
      This excerpt is important because it highlights how the investments received by AgroCenta from investors and partners (UK charity Shell Foundation, the UK's Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), AV Ventures and Rabo Foundation) helped the company mitigate the impact of the covid-19 pandemic, and allowed for its operations to continue and frow.
  • This funding, secured from UK charity Shell Foundation, the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), AV Ventures and Rabo Foundation, will enable AgroCenta to further develop its smallholder farmer inclusion programmes and procure crops at transparent and fair market prices to service offtake contracts.
    • kenza_abdelhaq
      kenza_abdelhaq on 13 Feb 21
       
      Agrocenta receives funding from diverse global institutions in order to invest in its inclusion programs.
  • In addition, lacking adequate infrastructure, logistics and transportation also limits their access to larger urban markets, where they could obtain much better pricing for their crops. Furthermore, the lack of basic data that enables KYC (Know Your Customer) and a limited or non-existent credit history means that smallholders have very limited access to finance. This prevents them from being able to utilise all of their land for growing crops or forces them to resort to using lower quality inputs — leading to stagnation at the bottom of the pyramid.
    • kenza_abdelhaq
      kenza_abdelhaq on 13 Feb 21
       
      AgroCenta doesn't only help smallholder farmers to have access to markets and financing, but it also supports them with logistics, transportation, and infrastructure.
mehdi-ezzaoui

Fawry's founder launches fintech fund - Wamda - 1 views

www.wamda.com/...-founder-launches-fintech-fund

FAWRY Fintech Africa Egypt Payments Platform

shared by mehdi-ezzaoui on 13 Feb 21 - No Cached
  • Egypt-based financial technology (fintech) company Fawry has played a pivotal role in providing digital payment capabilities to businesses and consumers alike in the country. Last year, the company went public on the Egyptian Exchange, a feat realised by few startups in the Middle East. Now, Fawry’s co-founder Mohamed Okasha has stepped down as the company’s managing director to launch his own fintech fund, Disruptech, with a target size of $25 million.  We spoke with Okasha about the fund and why he decided to launch it. 
  • mehdi-ezzaoui on 13 Feb 21
     
    Egypt-based financial technology (fintech) company Fawry has played a pivotal role in providing digital payment capabilities to businesses and consumers alike in the country. Last year, the company went public on the Egyptian Exchange, a feat realised by few startups in the Middle East.
tahaemsd

Zeepay seeks to expand to Eastern and Southern Africa | Digital Watch - 0 views

dig.watch/...nd-eastern-and-southern-africa

fintech payments africa modernization electronic

shared by tahaemsd on 12 Feb 21 - No Cached
  • Ghanain mobile payment company Zeepay is seeking funds to expand(link is external) to Eastern and Southern Africa. The company whose operations have been funded by local investors is looking to tap into remittances as well as venture capital funds.
    • tahaemsd
      tahaemsd on 12 Feb 21
       
      Zeepay is looking for funds to set up regional offices in Rwanda and south Africa
hindelquarrouti

South African fintech Jumo raises $55 million in Goldman-led funding - 0 views

internationalfinance.com/55-million-goldman-led-funding

Jumo funding new-markets fintech

shared by hindelquarrouti on 13 Feb 21 - No Cached
  • The startup will use the proceeds from the funding to expand into new markets and launch new products. Jumo is targeting entrepreneurs in emerging markets — and plans to offer next-generation savings, lending and insurance products to them. 
  • The startup currently operates in five African countries — Kenya, Ghana, Uganda, Zambia and Tanzania. It closely works with financial firms and telecoms to provide its services, media reports said. 
  • hindelquarrouti on 13 Feb 21
     
    Jumo received an amount of $55 million in founding, and it will use them in order to penetrate new emerging markets; as well as, introducing new products that will increase customer's satisfaction.
kenza_abdelhaq

Digital Innovation in Emerging Markets: A Case Study of Mobile Money | MIT CISR - 0 views

cisr.mit.edu/...tionVodafone_OrlikowskiBarrett

M-Pesa Kenya Payments Services

shared by kenza_abdelhaq on 12 Feb 21 - No Cached
  • We describe the success of M-PESA in Kenya and the subsequent disappointment when M-PESA was replicated in Tanzania. We show how emerging markets are likely to be more different from than similar to one another. Thus, companies should consider a strategy of exploration as they attempt to expand within emerging markets. 
  • In 2008, a year after launching in Kenya, Vodafone attempted to replicate this success in neighboring Tanzania, a country that resembled Kenya in many important ways—size of population (40+ million) and main languages spoken (Swahili and English), as well as levels of literacy, unbanked, and mobile phone usage. But M-PESA in Tanzania did not grow on anything like the scale and scope of M-PESA in Kenya
  • M-PESA was initially developed by Vodafone as a mobile-based, microfinancing application funded partially by the UK Department for International Development to extend financial access to the unbanked populations in East Africa.
    • kenza_abdelhaq
      kenza_abdelhaq on 13 Feb 21
       
      Developed by the mobile telecommunications company Vodafone, M-Pesa was first a microfinancing solution promoting financial inclusion in East Africa.
  • ...2 more annotations...
  • Managed by the corporate social responsibility (CSR) group within Vodafone, M-PESA was designed for a niche market: microfinancing institutions and their clients. The project was intended to be low-cost, low-key, small in scale, and modest in scope—focused on addressing issues of financial inclusion within the developing world. 
    • kenza_abdelhaq
      kenza_abdelhaq on 13 Feb 21
       
      M-Pesa's niche market: microfinancing institutions and their clients.
  • The redesigned M-PESA system launched in Kenya in April 2007, growing rapidly through uptake and user innovation of new services. Now used by over 17 million Kenyans—which is more than two-thirds of the adult population—it is estimated that annually some 31% of the country’s GDP flows through it.
    • kenza_abdelhaq
      kenza_abdelhaq on 13 Feb 21
       
      - Important customer reach. - Facilitates the transfer of funds as 31% of the country's GDP flows through the platform.
  • mohammed_ab on 12 Feb 21
     
    I think that this article shows something very important that we should into consideration in our capstone research. It shows how the same service was launched in very similar African countries, yet the penetration and growth results were far from the same. It's important because it shows that if we want to use a fintech strategy followed by a foreign company to an African one, it could result in very bad consequences even if this same strategy works for the foreign company.
  • kenza_abdelhaq on 13 Feb 21
     
    "M-PESA was initially developed by Vodafone as a mobile-based, microfinancing application funded partially by the UK Department for International Development to extend financial access to the unbanked populations in East Africa. Managed by the corporate social responsibility (CSR) group within Vodafone, M-PESA was designed for a niche market: microfinancing institutions and their clients. The project was intended to be low-cost, low-key, small in scale, and modest in scope-focused on addressing issues of financial inclusion within the developing world. "
hibaerrai

CONSORTIUM ACQUIRES MAJORITY STAKE IN FAWRY, EGYPT'S LEADING E-PAYMENT SERVICES PLATFOR... - 0 views

fawry.com/ng-e-payment-services-platform

Fawry Egypt E-payments Online Fintech Shares

shared by hibaerrai on 13 Feb 21 - No Cached
  • Founded in 2008, Fawry is Egypt’s first and largest Electronic Payment Network, offering financial services to consumers and businesses through more than 50,000 collection points and a variety of channels nationwideBased on its own-patented technology, that is fully compliant with international security standards of the ISA 27001 and PA DSS certifications, Fawry performs more than a million financial operations daily.Fawry services include collection services, customer acquisition, electronic cash, payment facilitation, and business-to-business collection centres.  In 2014, Fawry’s revenue reached EGP 210 million, and the company served more than 15 million customers.
    • nouhaila_zaki
      nouhaila_zaki on 13 Feb 21
       
      This excerpt is important because it touches upon many aspects of Fawry: the nature of the company, the nature of services and products offered amongst other things.
  • A consortium of international financial investors comprising the Egyptian-American Enterprise Fund (“EAEF”), Helios Investment Partners (“Helios”, acting on behalf of funds it advises) and the MENA Long-Term Value Fund (“MENA LTV”) (together, the “Consortium”) today announced it has acquired a majority stake in Fawry, the leading electronic bill presentment and payment platform in Egypt at a purchase price valuing the company at EGP 773 million, approximately US$ 100 million.Headquartered in Cairo, Fawry provides users with a secure electronic bill presentment and payment services solution, connecting consumers, merchants, governments and financial institutions on a consolidated gateway that is accessible through multiple channels, including Point of Sale (POS) machines, ATMs, post offices, online and through mobile wallets.  Since its establishment in 2009, Fawry has been at the forefront of electronic payments in Egypt, providing pioneering, innovative and convenient payment solutions to its customers. The company today processes over one million transactions a day and operates a network of over 50,000 collection points in 300 cities and suburbs across the country.
    • hibaerrai
      hibaerrai on 13 Feb 21
       
      The Egyptian American Enterprise Fund acquired a majority stake in fawry which is a huge investment for the fintech. It promotes financial inclusion.
  • nouhaila_zaki on 13 Feb 21
     
    "Founded in 2008, Fawry is Egypt's first and largest Electronic Payment Network, offering financial services to consumers and businesses through more than 50,000 collection points and a variety of channels nationwide Based on its own-patented technology, that is fully compliant with international security standards of the ISA 27001 and PA DSS certifications, Fawry performs more than a million financial operations daily. Fawry services include collection services, customer acquisition, electronic cash, payment facilitation, and business-to-business collection centres.  In 2014, Fawry's revenue reached EGP 210 million, and the company served more than 15 million customers."
nourserghini

Carbon to fund fintechs in Kenya, Uganda, Nigeria, Ghana, Cote d'Ivoire and Egypt | apt... - 0 views

aptantech.com/...a-ghana-cote-divoire-and-egypt

Carbon Investment Competition

shared by nourserghini on 13 Feb 21 - No Cached
  • Carbon’s Disrupt fund, the first of its kind by an African fintech startup, will invest up to $10,000 per startup (for 5 percent equity) and give access to Carbon’s API, allowing investees to leverage Carbon’s growing customer base and innovative technology platform, to get to market faster. Acknowledging that its success is dependent on the growth of the tech ecosystem, Carbon expects the initiative to spark more collaboration and further investment that should drive growth across the ecosystem.
    • nourserghini
      nourserghini on 13 Feb 21
       
      This article states that Carbon is the first fintech to start the initiative of a Disrupt fund for African startups.This shows how strongly Carbon believes in the success of start-ups and how eager they are to keep up with the new technology's market.
nouhaila_zaki

Top 10 Benefits Of Crowdfunding - 0 views

www.forbes.com/...-10-benefits-of-crowdfunding-2

Crowdfunding Fintech Strategy Benefits

shared by nouhaila_zaki on 13 Feb 21 - No Cached
  • Capital doesn’t come so easy to entrepreneurs these days. In 2012, the total number of loans and money distributed in the U.S. via the Small Business Administration has dropped as much as 20 percent! Also, nearly 98%of the business plans received by accredited investors and VC’s are rejected. Without a doubt, the current business-funding environment is in need of disruption. One such disruption is the rising industry of crowdfunding, which involves a platform, an individual or entity in need of funding, and a community of people willing to collectively contribute these funds in exchange for rewards and recognition. The amount of money raised by crowdfunding platforms during 2012 is expected to reach $2.8 billion, up 91% since 2011.
    • nouhaila_zaki
      nouhaila_zaki on 13 Feb 21
       
      This excerpt is important because it describes how complicated it is for entrepreneurs to access funding from accredited investors. The rise of crowdfunding is described as a disruption and thus a strategy that could be used by the eligible companies we've seen so far.
tahaemsd

WorldCover Raises $6 million Fund to Provide Insurance for Smallholder Farmers - Techgi... - 0 views

www.techgistafrica.com/...urance-for-smallholder-farmers

FinTech Africa Service modernization climate change

shared by tahaemsd on 13 Feb 21 - No Cached
  • WorldCover has raised a sum of $6 million Series A fund to help support smallholder farmers in emerging countries in Africa. The company reduces the risk of farming for smallholder farmers with the use of satellite imagery, on-ground sensors, mobile phones and data analytics to provide crop insurance protection.
    • tahaemsd
      tahaemsd on 13 Feb 21
       
      Worldcover raises $6 million fund to provide insurance for smallholder farmers
nouhaila_zaki

M-Pesa - 2 views

www.investopedia.com/...mpesa.asp

M-Pesa Financial inclusion Kenya

shared by nouhaila_zaki on 07 Feb 21 - No Cached
  • One of the drives for Fintech innovations, like M-Pesa, is financial inclusion, which is mostly geared toward an underbanked or unbanked group of people.
    • nouhaila_zaki
      nouhaila_zaki on 07 Feb 21
       
      Financial inclusion is a main priority of M-Pesa.
  • M-Pesa is a virtual banking system that provides transaction services through a SIM card. Once the SIM has been inserted into the card slot of the mobile device, users can make payments and transfer money to vendors and family members with SMS messages. Users with no bank accounts can access the numerous M-Pesa outlets distributed across the country. The money that needs to be stored is given to the kiosk attendant, who transfers the amount in digital form to the user’s M-Pesa’s account. Cash collected from M-Pesa is deposited in bank accounts held by Safaricom. The bank accounts serve as regular checking accounts and are insured up to a maximum of 100,000 shillings (or $1000) by the Deposit Protection Fund. M-Pesa provides receipts as proof of transaction. For a transaction to take place, both parties have to exchange each other’s phone numbers because the phone numbers act as account numbers. After settlement, both parties receive an SMS notification with the full name of the counterparty and the amount of funds deposited or withdrawn from the user’s account. The mobile receipt, which is received within seconds, helps to promote transparency for all individuals involved in a transaction.
    • nouhaila_zaki
      nouhaila_zaki on 07 Feb 21
       
      This excerpt is important because it explains how this mobile banking service operates. 1. Payments are made through SMS messages. 2. Cash collected by M-Pesa is deposited in bank accounts held by Safaricom. 3. Phone numbers act as account numbers. 4. M-Pesa provides receipts as proof of transaction.
  • M-Pesa is a virtual banking system that provides transaction services through a SIM card. Once the SIM has been inserted into the card slot of the mobile device, users can make payments and transfer money to vendors and family members with SMS messages. Users with no bank accounts can access the numerous M-Pesa outlets distributed across the country. The money that needs to be stored is given to the kiosk attendant, who transfers the amount in digital form to the user’s M-Pesa’s account. Cash collected from M-Pesa is deposited in bank accounts held by Safaricom. The bank accounts serve as regular checking accounts and are insured up to a maximum of 100,000 shillings (or $1000) by the Deposit Protection Fund. M-Pesa provides receipts as proof of transaction. For a transaction to take place, both parties have to exchange each other’s phone numbers because the phone numbers act as account numbers. After settlement, both parties receive an SMS notification with the full name of the counterparty and the amount of funds deposited or withdrawn from the user’s account. The mobile receipt, which is received within seconds, helps to promote transparency for all individuals involved in a transaction.
    • ghtazi
      ghtazi on 08 Feb 21
       
      this article shows us how M-Pesa is a virtual system that provides transaction services through a SIM card. M-Pesa allows users to deposit, withdraw, transfer money, pay for goods and services (Lipa na M-Pesa), access credit and savings, all with a mobile device.
  • ...9 more annotations...
  • A farmer has no bank account and wants to deposit his commodity sale proceeds of 1,000 shillings goes to an M-Pesa outlet and deposits the money with the kiosk agent or attendant. The agent, in turn, uses her phone to access the client’s account with the client’s registered phone number and credit the account for 1,000 shillings.
    • ghtazi
      ghtazi on 08 Feb 21
       
      M-Pesa target customers are anybody who has a phone.
  • M-Pesa is a mobile banking service that allows users to store and transfer money through their mobile phones. M-Pesa was introduced in Kenya as an alternative way for the population of the country to have access to financial services. Safaricom, the largest mobile phone operator in Kenya, launched M-Pesa in 2007. The service is a blend of two entities where M means mobile and Pesa means money or payment in the Swahili language.
  • Financial inclusion is an initiative that seeks to include residents who have no access to banks or who can’t afford the required minimum deposits in the digital banking era. In order for this initiative to succeed, different sectors must collaborate in sharing data with each other and build a meaningful digital platform.
    • kenzabenessalah
      kenzabenessalah on 12 Feb 21
       
      I like how M-PESA gave opportunities for those who cannot afford to have bank accounts , an alternative to still have access to those services.
  • Through mobile payment services like M-Pesa, the standard of living in Kenya has improved greatly. Market traders, debt collectors, farmers, and cab drivers don’t need to carry around or transact in a large amount of cash. This means that the occurrence of theft, robbery, and fraud is reduced. Also, individuals and business owners don’t have to wait in long lines for hours to make their electricity and water bill payments because these can be made using M-Pesa.
    • samielbaqqali
      samielbaqqali on 12 Feb 21
       
      The mobile payment industry was revolutionized by M-Pesa. The value of this business in the financial industry is demonstrated by the fact that the term M-Pesa has a financial significance. I believe that by using digitalisation in a way that can benefit people and solve their problems, M-Pesa has gained its impact.
  • To combat fraud, Safaricom mandates that users of a Safaricom SIM card who want to register for M-Pesa have to do so with a valid government ID such as the Kenyan national identification card or a passport. This way, each transaction is marked with the identification of the party transferring, paying, depositing, or withdrawing money from an account.
    • ghtazi
      ghtazi on 13 Feb 21
       
      to combat fraud they use either a sim card, ID card, or passport. in this way every transaction made will be marked with identifications of the parties transferring money, paying or whatever action it was made.
  • To combat fraud, Safaricom mandates that users of a Safaricom SIM card who want to register for M-Pesa have to do so with a valid government ID such as the Kenyan national identification card or a passport. This way, each transaction is marked with the identification of the party transferring, paying, depositing, or withdrawing money from an account.
  • M-Pesa is one of the innovative tools that have been birthed from the collaboration of telecommunication and banking sectors in East Africa.M-Pesa began in Kenya and is being utilized in 10 countries, including India and Romania. Emergent technology in the financial sector, or Fintech, has made it possible for financial services and products, like M-Pesa, to be more accessible at small costs.M-Pesa makes it possible for unbanked people to pay for and receive goods and services using a mobile phone instead of utilizing a brick-and-mortar bank.
    • nourserghini
      nourserghini on 13 Feb 21
       
      this article explains that M-pesa is a virtual banking platform that gives the opportunity for unbanked or underbanked individuals to conduct transactions through a SIM card.
  • This cross-communication tactic used by M-Pesa is developing rapidly in sub-Saharan Africa, where the telecommunication and banking sectors are working together to create mobile banking services for those with limited access to traditional banking.
    • sawsanenn
      sawsanenn on 13 Feb 21
       
      Mobile payment is progressively being used in emerging regions in which a large percentage of the population has little or no access to traditional banking such as Africa
  • Mobile money is increasingly being adopted in developing nations where a high percentage of the population has little or no access to traditional banking. Revolutionary services like Paga, MTN Mobile Money, Airtel Money, and Orange Money are disrupting the traditional payment systems used frequently by residents of emerging nations, by changing the economy from a cash society to a digital one.
    • nouhaila_zaki
      nouhaila_zaki on 13 Feb 21
       
      This excerpt is important because it reflects the increasing importance of mobile money i.e. as proposed by M-Pesa in developing countries.
  • hichamachir on 12 Feb 21
     
    M-Pesa revolutionized the mobile payment industry. The fact that the word M-Pesa got a financial meaning shows the importance of this company in the financial industry. I think that M-Pesa gained its influence by using digitalization in way that can help people and solve their problems.
tahaemsd

Lumkani: The little blue box that saves lives - CNN - 0 views

edition.cnn.com/...index.html

FinTech Africa Service modernization protection

shared by tahaemsd on 13 Feb 21 - No Cached
  • Funded through a government innovation agency and a successful crowdsourcing campaign, the start-up has also won several awards and grants, including best start-up in 2014's Global Innovation through Science & Technology competition.Last year, it was chosen by the International Red Cross as a provider for its Fire Sensors initiative, a project that has distributed 900 of the devices along with extensive market research.Julie Arrighi, Innovation Advisor at the American Red Cross, said that using networked heat sensors like Lumkani is crucial to mitigating the growing risk of slum fires around the world.
    • kenza_abdelhaq
      kenza_abdelhaq on 13 Feb 21
       
      Lumkani's technology prevented many disasters and was successful at raising funds through government innovation agency and crowdsourcing campaign. The innovative aspect and importance of the technology received many recognitions and awards.
  • Lumkani devices are networked to each other using radio frequency, the same technology used in garage remotes. When a fire is detected, the alarm sounds in all homes within a 40 meter radius, using a different tone to signify to users when the blaze is in a separate dwelling.
    • tahaemsd
      tahaemsd on 13 Feb 21
       
      Technology used by Lumkani, the same used in garage remotes.
  • kenza_abdelhaq on 13 Feb 21
     
    "Funded through a government innovation agency and a successful crowdsourcing campaign, the start-up has also won several awards and grants, including best start-up in 2014's Global Innovation through Science & Technology competition. Last year, it was chosen by the International Red Cross as a provider for its Fire Sensors initiative, a project that has distributed 900 of the devices along with extensive market research. Julie Arrighi, Innovation Advisor at the American Red Cross, said that using networked heat sensors like Lumkani is crucial to mitigating the growing risk of slum fires around the world."
tahaemsd

SA's Lumkani closes seed funding round from Accion, 4Di - 0 views

disrupt-africa.com/...-funding-round-from-accion-4di

FinTech Africa Service modernization protection

shared by tahaemsd on 13 Feb 21 - No Cached
  • South African startup Lumkani, which addresses the challenge of fire safety in informal settlements through a combination of early-warning fire detection technology and financial services, has closed a seed funding round to provide insurance coverage to low-income consumers.
    • tahaemsd
      tahaemsd on 13 Feb 21
       
      providing south africans who are living in informal settlements access to financial services that have previously not been on the market.
tahaemsd

WorldCover (YC W16) is Peer-to-Peer Funded Crop Insurance in the Developing World - 0 views

blog.ycombinator.com/urance-in-the-developing-world

FinTech Africa Service modernization climate change

shared by tahaemsd on 13 Feb 21 - No Cached
  • Based on its success thus far in Ghana, WorldCover expects that its model could expand to work across the entire developing world, where 500 million smallholder farming households feed 80% of the population. Ultimately, this approach could scale far beyond drought insurance, to provide protection against other risks.
    • tahaemsd
      tahaemsd on 13 Feb 21
       
      Worldcocver's unique funding and pricing model allows them to underwrite farmers in the developing world profitably and confidently
ghtazi

Ghanaian agri-tech startup AgroCenta raises $790k pre-Series A funding - Disrupt Africa - 0 views

disrupt-africa.com/...ises-790k-pre-series-a-funding

platfrom Ghana Merchanting

shared by ghtazi on 12 Feb 21 - No Cached
  • “The demand for agricultural raw materials from offtakers in the brewery, manufacturing and consumer sector is increasing exponentially because of the easing of the COVID-19 restrictions that were put in place by the government of Ghana, hence this capital injection will help to secure purchases at fair and transparent prices from smallholders — a much needed lifeline for many who are at the proverbial bottom of the pyramid.”
    • aminej
      aminej on 12 Feb 21
       
      This is an issue we also used to have in Morocco in period of crisis. Farmers start increasing prices because of the high demand and people start complainning. It is important to Regulate prices in the Market in order to avoid a civil war in period of crisis
  • AgroCenta will use the funding to further develop its smallholder farmer inclusion programmes and procure crops at transparent and fair market prices to service offtake contracts. The startup’s chief executive officer (CEO) Francis Obirikorang and co-founder Michael Ocansey said the investment was vitally important.
    • tahaemsd
      tahaemsd on 12 Feb 21
       
      having the support of leading institutions, particularly with the covid backdrop, can be a significant milestone for Agrocenta
  • This is a significant milestone for AgroCenta, having the support of leading institutions, particularly with the COVID-19 backdrop, underlining the strength of AgroCenta and the importance of its mission,” they said. 
    • sawsanenn
      sawsanenn on 13 Feb 21
       
      this excerpt is important because it shows the solidarity between companies during a crisis time. Plus we can see the efforts to help smallholder farmers to fight this crisis. this is another approach for economic growth even during a pandemic
  • ...1 more annotation...
  • Founded in 2016, AgroCenta operates a mobile merchanting platform which provides market information, storage and delivery solutions, and financial services to smallholder farmers in Ghana.
    • ghtazi
      ghtazi on 13 Feb 21
       
      agrocenta It operates a mobile merchanting platform that provides smallholder farmers in Ghana with market information, storage, and delivery solutions, and financial services.
ghtazi

AV Ventures Invests in AgroCenta, Supporting Digital and Financial Inclusion of Ghanaia... - 0 views

www.acdivoca.org/...f-ghanaian-smallholder-farmers

Agrocenta COVID19 Security

shared by ghtazi on 12 Feb 21 - No Cached
  • AV Ventures, ACDI/VOCA’s impact investing subsidiary, recently completed its investment in AgroCenta, a technology-driven agricultural platform provider in Ghana. The funding made by AV Ventures is part of a US$790,000 pre-Series A investment round with other participating international institutions, including Shell Foundation, the United Kingdom’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, and Rabo Foundation, with support from AgroCenta’s strategic advisor, Qbera Capital.
    • tahaemsd
      tahaemsd on 12 Feb 21
       
      With the newly secured funding, agrocenta will widen the reach of its smallholder farmer financial inclusion programs
  • The digital services AgroCenta provides along the selected cereals value chain also improve the repayment of loans by smallholder farmers. The services provide farmers with an end market through the offtaking of produce and through facilitating the provision of high-quality agricultural inputs, which maximize their yields and productivity. To date, the average farmer on CropChain has increased their income by 35 percent and their crop yields by 40 percent, while reducing their food waste by 25 percent. AgroCenta has also made strides to promote gender and social inclusion; nearly half of its CropChain users and more than half of its microloan borrowers on LendIt are female smallholder farmers. 
    • nouhaila_zaki
      nouhaila_zaki on 13 Feb 21
       
      This excerpt is important because it introduces the results of using AgroCenta on smallholder farmers, ranging between the maximization of productivity, of income, reduction of food waste,to gender and social inclusion.
  • Founded in 2016, AgroCenta operates two integrated digital platforms in Ghana, CropChain and LendIt, to help address challenges related to smallholder farmers’ access to markets and financial services.
    • kenza_abdelhaq
      kenza_abdelhaq on 13 Feb 21
       
      Since 2016, AgroCenta operates 2 digital platforms: - CropChain: integrated agricultural supply chain management platform. - LendIt: allowing access to financial services like mobile payments, microloans, crop insurance.
  • ...4 more annotations...
  • Poor infrastructure and logistics prevent many smallholder farmers in Ghana from accessing large, urban markets where they could obtain better prices for their crops. Many of these farmers lack information on fair market prices, which leaves them susceptible to selling at low prices to middlemen. Without a strong credit history, many of them also have limited access to finance for purchasing high-quality agricultural inputs that would enable them to scale beyond subsistent production.  
    • sawsanenn
      sawsanenn on 13 Feb 21
       
      this excerpt shows reasons why smallholder farmers should consider agrocenta to increase their profitability and their revenues
  • For AV Ventures, the investment is part of its long-term strategy of providing innovative and catalytic capital to support growth-oriented small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) like AgroCenta that make up the “missing middle” of investment — too large for microfinance but too small or too early-stage to attract private equity investors. These SMEs are often the backbone of economies and potential drivers of innovation, but too often they miss out on financing that could enable their growth and longevity.  
    • hibaerrai
      hibaerrai on 13 Feb 21
       
      Agrocenta attracts more investors as it is considered among small and medium businesses that promote innovation. In fact, the fintech is specialized in agricultural loans, something not that common in the country.
  • CropChain is an integrated agricultural supply chain management platform that provides smallholder farmers with access to markets. Farmers use the platform to advertise their produce, while large offtakers or buyers of selected cereals use it to make purchases or enter long-term offtaker purchase contracts with AgroCenta. AgroCenta leverages the platform to source cereals directly from smallholder farmers to supply to large offtakers who have contracts with the company. This allows AgroCenta to earn margins between the price it pays farmers and the contractually agreed upon price with offtakers.
    • mbellakbail69
      mbellakbail69 on 13 Feb 21
       
      Agrocenta draws even more investment amongst SMEs that promote innovation. This extract shows some of the reasons why smallholders should consider Agrocentra for increasing the profitability and income .
  • “This is a significant milestone for AgroCenta, having the support of leading institutions, particularly with the COVID-19 backdrop, underlining the strength of AgroCenta and the importance of its mission. The demand for agricultural raw materials from offtakers in the brewery, manufacturing, and consumer sector is increasing exponentially because of the easing of COVID-19 restrictions that were put in place by the government of Ghana. Hence, this capital injection will help to secure purchases at fair and transparent prices from smallholders — a much needed lifeline for many who are at the proverbial bottom of the pyramid.”
    • ghtazi
      ghtazi on 13 Feb 21
       
      in this excerpt, we can see how agrocenta takes the pandemic situation and what are the solutions that the company adopts to face it.
ayoubb

We Got Funded: Egypt-Based Fintech Startup Moneyfellows Raises Seed Funds - 0 views

www.entrepreneur.com/...308849

shared by ayoubb on 13 Feb 21 - No Cached
  • Egypt-based Moneyfellows, a tech startup that digitizes informal lending between friends and family networks, has raised US$600,000 in an investment round led by Dubai Angel Investors and 500 Startups.
    • ayachehbouni
      ayachehbouni on 13 Feb 21
       
      The company reached out to every single investor in the region. Some refused, some did not answer at all and yet, Moneyfellows was able to secure such a huge investment thanks to some angel investors. Now, the company will probably receive more offers of investments.
  • Founded in 2015, the idea for Moneyfellows hit the startup’s founder and CEO Ahmed Wadi in Germany, where as a fresh graduate with a modest pay, he was looking to fund his own wedding and honeymoon. “Doing an offline money circle with friends and family back home was my only resort,” Wadi recalls. “It was extremely painful to find a suitable one, manage it, and keep track of it. If there existed a digitized version of this, I would’ve been a frequent user myself. There wasn’t; so, I decided to do something about it, and do it myself.”
    • ayoubb
      ayoubb on 13 Feb 21
       
      MoneyFellows
ghtazi

Mukuru - ECP Investments - 0 views

www.ecpinvestments.com/...mukuru

Mukuru Funds Expenses

shared by ghtazi on 13 Feb 21 - No Cached
  • Mukuru is uniquely focused on serving low- and middle-income migrants who typically send money home to their families to cover basic living expenses and who otherwise rely on informal and inconsistent channels such as buses, taxis, friends, and family. Through Mukuru, customers can send money through more reliable channels via bank transfer, cash deposit, credit/debit card or via a Mukuru Money Card and/or mobile money wallet. Friends and family members of these customers can then receive the money through the same methods (cash collection, bank transfer, cash to card, or mobile money wallet).
    • nouhaila_zaki
      nouhaila_zaki on 13 Feb 21
       
      This excerpt is important because it reflects some important aspects of the company's operations and business model. 1- The customer segment: low and middle-income migrants in Africa. 2- What problem Mukuru helps to solve: it provides migrants who send money to their families through informal channels with a formal and regulated platform.
  • Mukuru is uniquely focused on serving low- and middle-income migrants who typically send money home to their families to cover basic living expenses and who otherwise rely on informal and inconsistent channels such as buses, taxis, friends, and family. Through Mukuru, customers can send money through more reliable channels via bank transfer, cash deposit, credit/debit card or via a Mukuru Money Card and/or mobile money wallet. Friends and family members of these customers can then receive the money through the same methods (cash collection, bank transfer, cash to card, or mobile money wallet).
    • sawsanenn
      sawsanenn on 13 Feb 21
       
      This article shows us the customers that Mukuru is targetting which are low and middle-income migrants and help them to send or receive money to or from their families or surroundings by offering easy services that everybody can understand and proceed it even the illiterate people.
  • Founded in 2004, Mukuru has established a powerful brand affinity with customers built on trust, reliability, and local engagement. The company has grown to operate over 90 remittance corridors, enabling more than 5 million individuals to receive funds to cover living expenses, school fees, medical expenses, and utility bills. Mukuru is supported by world-class regulatory and compliance systems, highly scalable technology architecture, and a comprehensive sales and distribution network.
    • ghtazi
      ghtazi on 13 Feb 21
       
      Mukuru was founded in 2004, and since then the company has built a trustful, reliable with its customers. the company enables more than 5 million individuals to receive funds to cover everyday expenses.
kenza_abdelhaq

Fintech Trends: Crowdfunding | finleap - 1 views

www.finleap.com/...fintech-trends-crowdfunding

Fintech Strategy Crowdfunding Borrowing

shared by kenza_abdelhaq on 13 Feb 21 - No Cached
  • The most obvious benefit of crowdfunding for entrepreneurs is the funding. With so many startups on the market, it is hard to gather the money needed to bring ideas to life. Through crowdfunding, ventures that do not have a company builder like FinLeap behind them, can gain support at the very beginning. Crowdfunding provides a way for innovate ideas to be presented attractively, so it can be launched. Moreover, a crowdfunding platform can help successful entrepreneurs to validate their product which can then help with gathering the Series A funding. It makes validation faster and more scalable. Additionally, a crowdfunding platform allows entrepreneurs to get insights from their future customers and experts in the startup field while building awareness for the idea. [3]
    • kenzabenessalah
      kenzabenessalah on 13 Feb 21
       
      Crowdfunding would help EasyEquities come up with new innovative ideas for entrepreneurs and future customers. With this strategy, the company will always be classified high in the "Trend" sectors of the FinTech industry.
  • One thing to remember, however, is that the entrepreneur does not choose his investors which leads to unclear boundaries in the process. In addition, depending on the platform, entrepreneurs have to pay out between 8% and 12% of their raise which has to be budgeted in. [5] Moreover, crowdfunding platforms usually require through reporting and disclosure procedures that are strictly followed, making every step of the entrepreneur difficult. Due diligence is also absent as investors can contribute very small amounts, so are not particularly concerned with it. [6]Finally, the low percentage of success in crowdfunding is the main disadvantage
    • nouhaila_zaki
      nouhaila_zaki on 13 Feb 21
       
      Though crowdfunding appears to be a great opportunity, this excerpt introduces us also to the drawbacks of this fintech strategy in order for us to make an informed decision when formulating a strategy. Problems of failure, due diligence, disclosure of confidential information to investors and the need for entrepreneurs to pay a certain percentage of their raise, and the need to carefully budget the amount needed since it cannot be changed later, are really discouraging many fintech companies from considering crowdfunding as an option.
  • the practice of funding a project or venture by raising many small amounts of money from a large number of people, typically via the Internet”. Thus, crowdfunding has become the champion of small businesses, allowing them to have a chance to succeed by showing their innovate business models to the world
    • kenza_abdelhaq
      kenza_abdelhaq on 13 Feb 21
       
      Crowdfunding is a great alternative to have access to financing even though the success rates of these campaigns may be low, but the prompt describing the project should be promising and innovative.
mohammed_ab

Continuing Its Mission Expansion, Kiva Announces A Fund For Unbanked Refugees - 0 views

www.forbes.com/...s-a-fund-for-unbanked-refugees

Kiva Crowdfunding Social Impact

shared by mohammed_ab on 13 Feb 21 - No Cached
  • While refugees need immediate humanitarian aid, of course, they generally struggle to find work or start a business over the long-term. That’s, in part, because financial institutions usually won’t lend to them. The fund also will be the first institutional investment opportunity from Kiva Capital Management, an asset manager slated to launch as a subsidiary later this year. The organization describes it as "impact-first", that is, returns will be concessionary.
  • mohammed_ab on 13 Feb 21
     
    Kiva is doing a great job by opting for social purposes because these kinds of projects usually help improve the company's reputation.
aymanelmamoun

SimbaPay launches Kenya to China payment service over WeChat | TechCrunch - 1 views

techcrunch.com/...ina-payment-service-via-wechat

E-Payment Africa FinTech

shared by aymanelmamoun on 12 Feb 21 - No Cached
  • The new product — which piggy-backs on WeChat’s messaging service — is aimed at Kenyan merchants who purchase goods from China, Kenya’s largest import source.
    • tahaemsd
      tahaemsd on 12 Feb 21
       
      Simbapay developed a third party payment aggregator that enables funds delivery when the buyer and seller both use Wechat
  • Forging another link between Africa and China’s digital economies, the African-focused money transfer startup SimbaPay and Kenya’s Family Bank have launched an instant payment service from East Africa to China.
  • The new product — which piggy-backs on WeChat’s messaging service — is aimed at Kenyan merchants who purchase goods from China, Kenya’s largest import source.
    • aminej
      aminej on 12 Feb 21
       
      SimbaPay offers a new connection between Africa and China for people who buy their goods from there. Kenya is one of the biggest importers of products from China equivalent of 4 billion $ which is huge.
  • ...5 more annotations...
  • SimbaPay transfers funds to 11 countries — nine in Africa then to China and India. “Early next year we’ll increase this to 29 countries,” said Sagini. This includes offering the WeChat China payment service elsewhere in East Africa.
    • ghtazi
      ghtazi on 13 Feb 21
       
      I like how simbapay finds its way through the African market and will increase the countries where customers can transfer funds from 11 to 29.
  • SimbaPay and Family Bank will generate revenues on the WeChat-based transfer service through a fee share arrangement on transactions. “We have a sliding scale of charges [for the service]. For example, to send the equivalent of $80 will cost $3.50,” said Sagini.This presents a significant reduction of fees and opportunity cost for Kenyan traders who import from China, according to Sagini and Family Bank.Current available payment methods to China for Kenyan businesses are less secure and more expensive options, such as traditional money transmitters (Western Union), SWIFT and off the grid services, according to Sagini and Family Bank Chief Operation Officer (COO) Godfrey Kamau Kariuki.
    • nouhaila_zaki
      nouhaila_zaki on 13 Feb 21
       
      This excerpt is very important because it explains how SimbaPay plans on promoting Sino-Kenyan trade: reduction of fees and opportunity costs for kenyan traders importing from China through a partnership with the chinese WeChat.
  • “Kenya imports about $4 billion goods from China. That’s the total market that we’re getting into. We’re looking at a single digit market share of the transactional volume around that,” SimbaPay co-founder Sagini Onyancha told TechCrunch.“The users [of the new product] are primarily small Kenyan businesses, that import phones, gadgets, electronics…small to medium size traders who import goods from China,” he said.
    • nouhaila_zaki
      nouhaila_zaki on 13 Feb 21
       
      This excerpt is important because it explains the reasons underlying SimbaPay's decision to launch an instant payment service from East Africa to China. Indeed, exchanges between Kenya and China are huge, and SimbaPay attempts to capitalize on this market. The potential users of this service are expected to be Kenyan small to medium-size business owners who import electronics from China.
  • SimbaPay and Family Bank estimate over seven million customers and businesses will be able to access their China WeChat payment service, based on projections of Kenya’s current SMEs.
    • sawsanenn
      sawsanenn on 13 Feb 21
       
      this estimation can be reached because of the huge customer portfolio that china has. Plus kenya is known to be one of the main importers from China
  • SimbaPay and Family Bank will generate revenues on the WeChat-based transfer service through a fee share arrangement on transactions. “We have a sliding scale of charges [for the service]. For example, to send the equivalent of $80 will cost $3.50,” said Sagini.
    • aymanelmamoun
      aymanelmamoun on 13 Feb 21
       
      Reducing fees and opportunity cost for Kenyan traders importing from China is a very crucial step to Family Bank.
  • mehdi-ezzaoui on 13 Feb 21
     
    Forging another link between Africa and China's digital economies, the African-focused money transfer startup SimbaPay and Kenya's Family Bank have launched an instant payment service from East Africa to China.
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