Kuda, a unique fintech startup from Nigeria, which claims to be a digital-only bank, has raised $1.6M in a pre-seed funding round to take the idea from beta to live launch in the later part of 2019.
Kuda has been granted a banking license by the Nigeria Central Bank classified as a micro-finance license which makes it the only fintech startup to have a standalone license of the sort.
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Sign up to attend: http://bit.ly/CryptoTourAfrica2019KEAccording to Babs Ogundeyi, Founder of Kudi:
“Kuda is the first digital-only bank in Nigeria with a standalone license. We’re not a mobile wallet or simply a mobile app piggybacking on an existing bank. We have built our own full-stack banking software from scratch. We can also take deposits and connect directly to the switch [Nigeria Central Switch].”
Some of the features of Kudi include:
- Open a bank account in 5 minutes
- Do all the KYC on the Kuda app
- Checking accounts with no monthly fees
- A free debit card
- Consumer savings plans (Coming soon)
- P2P payments (Coming soon)
Currently, Kuda has relationships with three of Nigeria’s largest financial institutions (GT Bank, Access Bank, Zenith Bank) which is expected to help the startup scale rapidly.
Speaking on the huge network of bank branches and ATMs these banks will offer, Ogundeyi said:
“Even though we don’t own a single branch, we actually have the largest branch network in the country.”
How does Kuda intend to make money?
“We plan to match different liability classes to the different asset classes that we create. That’s how we make money, that’s how we get efficiency in terms of income,.” ~ Ogundeyi
When asked about expansion plans, Ogundeyi said:
“It’s Nigeria for right now, but the plan is build a Pan-African digital-only bank.”
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