A Kenyan payment services provider, Cellulant, is expanding its operations to South Africa with a new business.
After testing the market for months, it is planning to round off fundraising for further expansion to the Middle East and the UK.
In an interview, Chief Business Officer (CBO) Sike Bamisebi said the 20-year-old enterprise has plans to leverage South Africa’s mature retail ecosystem and, in the next two years, will begin operations in the United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom.
Bamisebi said this at the Africa Tech Summit in London, adding that Cellulant is about to close its latest fundraising round.
The firm is yet to announce the possible amount, it has in the past highlighted that it could raise as much as US$ 100 million.
These emerging markets fall in line with our strategy to prioritise the top markets
Read also: Cellulant partners Lusaka Chamber of Commerce to digitize payments
According to the CBO, “These new markets fall in line with our strategy to prioritise the top markets.
“We provide a valuable proposition in South Africa. We work with premium merchants and we give them access to these markets.”
Payment technology companies have been at the helm of the new wave of investment in African start-ups, which reached a record high of $5 billion in 2021.
Businesses like Flutterwave in Nigeria are taking advantage of the continent’s growing e-commerce demand, which is being fueled by improved connectivity and a dearth of traditional banks
Cellulant’s Backers
Cellulant’s backers include TPG Growth’s The Rise Fund, which led a $47.5-million round in 2018. The company has offices in 18 countries and serves 35 others.
The company assists businesses in receiving payments online and offline, including mobile money, cards or banks. Its clients include fintechs, banks, airlines, and fast-food businesses such as Burger King.
Investment into the start-up space has cooled globally, including in Africa, after a record $ 5 billion of investment in 2021. However, data from deal aggregator Briter Bridges shows the total amount of money raised this year is likely to match the previous year.