Ivory Coast fintech, HUB2, has raised $8.5 million in a series A funding round led by pan-African early-stage investor, TLCom Capital.
Other participants in the round include:
- FMO
- Enza Capital
- BpiFrance, and
- Eric Barbier, the Founder of Thunes,
among the longer list of investors.
African VC, Enza Capital, Closes $58 Million Fund with 41 Investments in 31 Companies Across Africahttps://t.co/SoK5WtvqqA
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Founded by Ashley Gauzere, HUB2 wants to solve payment issues like fragmentation, interoperability gaps, and collection which are widespread across the continent.
“The one issue I wanted to solve in French-speaking Africa after two decades in telecom and seeing the need for high-quality, interoperable payment solutions was creating infrastructure and unifying payments in the region like a Stripe-like platform,” Gauzere said in a recent interview.
According to the startup, HUB2 offers “comprehensive coverage and seamless integration across payment methods,” partnering with mobile money providers like:
and it simplifies payments by enabling fintechs to collect:
- Mobile money
- Bank transfers
- Card payments, and
- Cryptocurrency
through a single API.
It serves as the payment infrastructure backbone for 55 fintechs across French-speaking Africa, including:
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Fintechs now account for 98% of its transaction volumes.
The startup is poised to process €1 billion in transaction volume (TPV) this year [2024], a significant leap from the €70 million handled in 2022. This growth is driven by consistent 15% month-over-month increases in both TPV and revenue, generated through take rates on these transactions.
“We have a very horizontal play, and our goal is to offer all payment methods – from mobile money and cards to banking and cryptocurrencies – covering the entire footprint for fintechs,” explained Jean-Rémi Kouchakji, who joined HUB2 as co-CEO in 2023.
Mobile money accounts for the majority of HUB2’s transactions, while other payment methods like credit cards, bank transfers, and cryptocurrency have seen limited adoption, noted Gauzere.
To tackle this, HUB2 plans to launch cross-border payment solutions, introduce stablecoin-based remittance services, and enhance its card payment capabilities by expanding its integration with CyberSource, VISA’s payment processing platform, across additional African markets.
Currently active in six Francophone African countries:
- Senegal
- Burkina Faso
- Benin
- Togo, and
- Cameroon
HUB2 aims to achieve full regional coverage within the next two years.
“We’re proud to work with HUB2 as the company extends its reach across Francophone Africa,” said Eloho Omame, partner at TLcom Capital.
“HUB2’s achievements in the region, combined with TLcom’s track record in Anglophone markets, create a powerful partnership that will make digital payments more accessible across the continent.”
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