Africa is a market of great opportunities and also of lost opportunities. The second largest continent in the world is slowly rising from his knees – at least in the area of payments. According to data from the African Development Bank, the Black Continent has the fastest growing middle class in the world. More than 313 million people, or 34% of the population of Africa, spends more than $ 2.20 a day – a 100% increase in less than 20 years.
Into this introduction there fits perfectly latest financing acquired by startup Paystack. Nigerians received a $ 1.3 million investment. The startup specializes in handling online payments. In Africa such platforms are still rare.
As one of the first Nigerian companies, Paystack got admitted to Y Combinator – the famous incubator located in Silicon Valley. Paystack then received a grant of $ 120,000, It might seem modest, but in Nigerian terms it was quite a lot. This allowed the startup to build foundation of the company, gaining more than 1.5 thousand active clients and finally win that $ 1.3 million grant.
Nigeria is experiencing real business booming. Last year, Nigerian companies collected a total of $ 150 billion in revenue. Yet, majority of transactions were carried out offline. Nigeria, however, has one of the fastest growing digital markets. By 2020, the country is supposed to significantly increas the use of smartphones.
In Nigeria there also operates FinTech bank Sun Trust Bank, founded by the country’s richest man Aliko Dangote. According to the report by KPMG, in the past two years in the FinTech industries there we invested more than $ 200 million – the third result on the continent – after South Africa and Egypt.
