Float
There are multiple players in the online lending space, and Tiger Global latest incarnation is no exception. While the company’s recent investments include the ubiquitous startups such as Zimbabaaj, IROKO and Jambo’s, it also appears that the olde school echelon has shuffled to the wings. To wit, one of the firm’s earliest and smallest incarnations, Capital Float, recently raised a whopping $45 million in Series C funding from Ribbit Capital. In addition to the cash, Capital Float is laying the groundwork for an expected expansion of its customer base and product offerings. The online lender has secured about $67 million in new debt lines from both banks and non-bank financial institutions in the past year. By March 2018, the company expects to have a user base of more than 5,000 and to be servicing over a quarter billion dollars in loans.
Flutter wave
Flutterwave is a payments platform based out of Lagos and San Francisco. The company provides technology and infrastructure for a wide variety of businesses. It enables SMEs, multinational brands, banks, and financial institutions to build secure payment solutions. Currently, Flutterwave serves 900,000 businesses worldwide. They also offer an API platform for building custom payment applications.
During its four-year run, Flutterwave has raised $45 million, averaging a few million dollars per year. That’s a very impressive amount for a fintech company. In fact, it makes Flutterwave the third African tech unicorn. As of right now, the company’s valuation is more than $1 billion.
Flutterwave has a presence in Nigeria, San Francisco, and Lagos. It serves a range of industries including ecommerce, remittance, gaming, streaming, and more. It has over 290,000 merchants and 500,000 registered Barter users. This expansion is part of a larger plan to help businesses and institutions in Africa connect to the global digital payments landscape.
In addition to providing payment services, Flutterwave has made waves in the ecommerce space with a recent acquisition of Disha, a Nigerian ecommerce startup. Moreover, the company launched the Flutterwave Store in 15 countries across Africa. These initiatives have helped tens of thousands of merchants sell their products online.
Despite some negative headlines, the COVID-19 pandemic did not negatively impact the growth of Flutterwave. Instead, the company reported 226% growth in its compound annual growth rate. The company’s CEO, Olugbenga Agboola, credits both customers and investors for the growth. He also praised the CBN for regulating the industry.
According to its press release, the company has expanded its offerings to include a mobile application that accelerates ecommerce growth. Additionally, it has introduced a new product called Barter. Moreover, it signed a multi-year sponsorship deal with the Basketball Africa League. With its current valuation and expansion, Flutterwave is one of the leading global payments companies.
For the future, the company will continue to expand its product portfolio. It will look to partner with smaller companies and invest in customer acquisition. However, questions will remain about the company’s profitability.