Nigerian Fintech Unicorn Moniepoint Bags $10Million Visa Investment, a leading global payments company.
African fintech firm Moniepoint has successfully raised more than $10 million in funding from Visa, pushing its Series C total to over $120 million. The digital payment company stated that this investment will enhance financial inclusion and support the growth of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) throughout Africa.
Visa’s backing underscores Moniepoint’s significant role and potential within Nigeria’s card value chain as a leading issuer and acquirer. Moniepoint is involved in various services, including electronic transfers, ATMs, POS devices, mobile agents, and web payments.
This announcement follows Moniepoint’s recent achievement of raising $110 million in a Series C funding round just three months ago, which boosted the company’s valuation to over a billion dollars. The investment reflects a growing interest in Moniepoint, which is viewed by many investors as a promising company with a bright future.
With Visa’s support, Moniepoint plans to enhance its services for businesses across Africa. Established in 2015, Moniepoint offers banking and payment solutions tailored for small and medium enterprises, as well as retail banking. It stands out as a leader in Nigeria’s agent banking sector, boasting more than 300,000 POS agents and processing 5.2 billion transactions in 2023.
This collaboration merges Moniepoint’s local knowledge and innovative approach with Visa’s extensive global resources and expertise.
“Visa’s investment is a powerful affirmation of our mission to digitize and empower African businesses on a large scale,” stated Tosin Eniolorunda, Founder and Group CEO of Moniepoint. “Our goal is to enhance financial inclusion, providing SMEs with the necessary tools and resources to succeed in a rapidly digitalizing economy.”
Visa joins a roster of other investors in Moniepoint, including Development Partners International, Google’s Africa Investment Fund, Verod Capital, Lightrock, QED Investors, Novastar Ventures, British International Investment (BII), FMO (the Dutch entrepreneurial development bank), Global Ventures, and Endeavor Catalyst.
“Moniepoint has developed an impressive platform that meets the specific needs of Africa’s SMEs, a vital component for driving economic growth,” remarked Andrew Torre, Regional President for Central and Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and Africa at Visa. “By making financial services and digital payments more accessible and efficient, Moniepoint is revolutionizing how businesses operate in Nigeria and beyond. We are thrilled to support their next stage of growth and innovation.”
Visa has become an investor in three Nigerian fintech unicorns that were founded locally: Interswitch, Flutterwave, and Moniepoint. Interswitch reached unicorn status in 2019 when Visa took a minority stake in the payments firm. Additionally, Visa was among the investors in Flutterwave’s $35 million Series B funding round in 2020. The global payments leader also took part in the Series A funding round for Paystack, the Nigerian fintech owned by Stripe, back in 2018.
Also read: Meta sets to Launch Edits App – A Strong Alternative to CapCut
Moniepoint’s Push for Contactless Payment Adoption
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has announced its commitment to promoting contactless payment methods by introducing draft guidelines for transaction limits in 2023. The success of these guidelines hinges on establishing clearer regulations and addressing concerns related to privacy, security, and trust.
The potential for contactless payments is significant, with the ability to greatly increase transaction volumes and surpass other payment options in the country.
How Long Will Moniepoint Customers Wait for Delayed Transfers and Refunds?
In discussing the collaboration between the two companies to enhance the payment ecosystem through contactless solutions, Eniolorunda highlighted that their partnership with Visa aims to facilitate access to micro-transactions.
“The central bank has emphasized the importance of advancing contactless services to enhance accessibility and enable micro-transactions. These are some of the outcomes we anticipate from our partnership, marking progress in the right direction,” he stated.
Moniepoint plans to utilize Visa’s Cybersource system for improved transaction visibility and intends to integrate with Visa Direct for remittances and money transfers, aiming to expand into markets both within and beyond Africa.
Also read: Google Updates Performance Max to Boost Advertiser Insights and Results
The company is preparing to provide contactless payment terminals to businesses and chip cards to individuals, paving the way for broader adoption.
Visa has observed that the use of contactless cards is outpacing mobile wallets in global markets. The company has a strong track record of investing in Africa’s payment infrastructure, supporting companies like Interswitch, Flutterwave, Paystack, and JUMO over the last ten years.
With its investment in Moniepoint, Visa is making strides into Nigeria’s SME market, focusing on the digitization of payments.
