Till a couple of years in the past, it was tough to make funds throughout borders nearly anyplace on the earth. But it surely’s nonetheless an enormous drawback in Africa, the place fragmented, disconnected techniques, excessive charges, and poor infrastructure make it robust for companies and people to maneuver cash rapidly and affordably.
Nearly all of individuals and companies nonetheless depend on outdated agent networks or grapple with cell pockets integrations. However there’s tangible demand for cheaper and simpler alternate options, notably in underserved areas like Francophone Africa.
Ivorian fintech Cauridor is getting down to resolve that, and it lately raised $3.5 million in seed funding to proceed constructing its fee rails that allow retailers, banks, telecom operators, and cash switch corporations transfer funds out and in of Africa.
Cauridor says its platform helps cell wallets, financial institution transfers, and money pickups by way of a community of greater than 25,000 brokers throughout Guinea, Senegal, Ivory Coast, Sierra Leone, and Liberia. These brokers are a part of a well-liked distribution technique within the area — they’re normally small enterprise house owners outfitted with point-of-sale (POS) units and allow money deposits, withdrawals, and invoice funds.
Cauridor is adopting a hybrid method to fixing the cash switch drawback — the identical method different fintechs within the area combine cash networks with digital infrastructure for native fee wants. Nonetheless, the method has enabled it to function remittance corridors to key markets like Ghana and Nigeria, and set up group-level contracts with main gamers equivalent to Ria, MoneyGram, and Western Union, alongside partnerships with Orange and MTN.
From remittance to B2B funds
Cauridor’s founders Oumar Rafiou Barry and Abdoulaye Bah skilled firsthand the challenges of sending a refund residence to Guinea when learning in Canada. They confronted sluggish, costly remittance choices in Francophone Africa, a area lengthy underserved by the worldwide remittance trade.
In 2019, this frustration drove them to begin BNB CashApp, a consumer-focused remittance platform for customers in Canada to ship cash to Africa. The app built-in instantly with banks, cell wallets like MTN, and an agent community outfitted with a cell portal to facilitate money payouts.
However because the platform grew, the founders encountered a bigger problem: Africa’s fragmented and inefficient fee infrastructure. “We realized early on that the rails in Francophone Africa have been nearly nonexistent. So we needed to go in and begin constructing fee rails within the area for the reason that funds there have been fragmented,” CEO Barry advised TechCrunch.
Sensing a chance, the crew pivoted in 2022 to construct fee rails for the area. By 2023, the corporate had merged its client remittance enterprise and B2B fee infrastructure below the Cauridor model, very similar to Tanzania’s Nala’s and Rafiki’s operational mannequin.
The shift paid off: Over 90% of the corporate’s income now comes from its fee rails enterprise. In 2023, Cauridor processed 2 million transactions and recorded whole fee quantity (TPV) of $300 million, which grew to $500 million in 2024, the corporate stated.
Competitors and future plans
Whereas Barry references extra outstanding gamers like Onafriq (previously MFS Africa) and Thunes as Cauridor’s major competitors, he says his firm has remained related as a result of it constructed fee rails in markets “nobody was ,” like Guinea and Liberia.
He famous that hands-on customer support and pricing have additionally helped it retain clients. The fintech offers customer support to resolve widespread points like rejected cell cash transactions resulting from incomplete KYC. For instance, if a recipient can solely obtain $10 out of a $700 fee, Cauridor steps in to assist improve their account and make sure the transaction goes by way of.
Barry thinks Cauridor’s robust native presence offers it an edge in securing higher foreign exchange margins, which it passes on to its clients. He stated this benefit has helped the corporate appeal to main purchasers like MoneyGram, which switched from opponents for higher charges and improved buyer assist.
Curiously, competitors within the cross-border funds house doesn’t rule out collaboration. A few of Cauridor’s opponents depend on its infrastructure in particular areas, simply because it companions with corporations like Thunes for a worldwide attain.
Cauridor employs about 200 individuals globally and has workplaces in Ivory Coast, Senegal, Guinea, Sierra Leone, and Liberia.
The seed spherical was led by Pan-African VC agency Oui Capital and noticed participation from Rally Cap, BKR Capital, and a few angel buyers.
With the contemporary money, the corporate plans to develop into new markets (it has new workplaces in Mali and Nigeria opening this yr), flesh out its groups, and increase advertising efforts. Barry advised TechCrunch that Cauridor can also be making ready for a Collection A spherical and exploring blockchain integration to streamline settlements and faucet into the rising adoption of stablecoins in Africa’s cross-border fee house.
