Kuda Bank, the digital-only Nigerian-based bank, has raised $10 million – the biggest seed round ever to be raised in Africa.
The funding comes on the back of strong demand for its services both on the continent and for the African diaspora.
Kuda is one of Africa’s leading digital challenger banks and one of the fastest growing fintechs on the continent. The bank recently partnered with Binance, the largest crypto exchange by volume globally, becoming the first first registered bank in Nigeria to be added as part of the Binance P2P payment options.
SEE ALSO: The mobile-first bank allows users to pay bills through the app, make transfers, and manage payments.
As a fully licensed bank, Kuda bank manages and backs deposits in a fully digital-only model. Partnerships with incumbent banks such as Zenith Bank, Guaranteed Trust and Access Banks allow people to make physical deposits and withdrawals when needed.
The bank also issues debit cards, in partnership with Visa and Mastercard.
The bank is especially popular among the younger consumers and its key target market being Nigerians under the age of 30 who make up 70% of the Nigerian population.
Since August 2019, we've been about people, love and free banking.
— Kuda MFB (@kudabank) November 10, 2020
Thank you for your faith in us. We're here because of you and we'll keep going because of you.
💜 from the Kuda team. pic.twitter.com/PeGUVUCaQG
The Kuda bank app offers personalized customer services by generating suggested budgets and savings plans for its users unlike trandtional banking apps that are just ‘dumb boxes’ for storing money. Kuda’s credit service terms are calculated based on a customer’s existing spending habits.
Along these lines, Kuda Bank has also been targeting small business owners, again largely ran by younger consumers who have the kind of incomes and lifestyles that mean they are actively depositing and spending money under these business models.
Having built its core banking services in-house and owning its full stack, the bank does not need to piggy banck on other financial institutions. This allows it to partner with other brands, including the recent addition of its banking services with Binance to offer its banking services to crypto users in Nigeria.
“Nigeria has the potential to be a great national economy if it’s well harnessed.
Tech is contributing significantly to that. That is why there is a lot of interest and why we are excited to be there.”
~ Babs Ogundeyi, CEO, Kuda Bank
NB: Look out for a podcast interview with Kuda Bank coming soon on Bitcoin KE
RECOMMENDED READING: Absa Becomes the First Bank to Phase Out Cheques as a Means of Payment in Africa as Digital Banking Dominates
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