Hi Fintech friends 👋,

Here are the highlights of what happened in African Fintech this week;

  • Nigerian Fintech secured SEC approval to raise $13.1 Million

  • African based VC announced the Second close of its $50 Million fund

  • UK based Fintech giant planned to launch in Morocco

  • Ethiopia’s Central Bank banned four US based Remittance companies

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💸Fundraise and Exits

  • Nigerian Fintech Payazasecured SEC approval to raise $13.1 Million under a commercial paper programme.

💰 Venture Funds

  • Cape Town-headquartered VC HAVAÍCannounced the second close of its $50 million African Innovation Fund 3.

🚀 Partnerships & Product Launches

  • Ethiopia’s Central Bank banned four U.S. remittance companies; ShgeyMoney Transfer, Adulis Money Transfer, Ramada Pay (Kaah), and TAAJ Money Transfer over fraudulent moves.

  • Revolut planned strategic launch in Morocco under new leadership.

  • NALA launched in Bangladesh.

👔 Leadership Lineup

  • LemFi CEO shared origin story and lessons for founders.

📰 News of the Week

  • Lipa Later sought $5 million from a UK lender two weeks after entering administration.

The proposal outlined a 36-month term loan with a steep annual interest rate of 14% on funds drawn interest-only for the first 24 months, with quarterly repayments kicking in from the 27th month.

Lipa Later which raised $16.6 Million in total funding, was founded in 2018. In December 2023, it announced a surprise $1.9 Million acquisition of Sky Garden, a struggling e-commerce platform.By March 2024, Lipa Later had run out of road. Staff were unpaid, creditors were circling, and fundraising efforts had stalled.

👀 Eye Openers

  • Zepz to adopt USDC.

📑 Read of the week

📖 Other News, Reads, and Media

  • Collect Africa shut down to focus with Stablecoin based payment solutions.

🎥 VIDEO INTERVIEWS/DISCUSSIONS

  • Interview with Floris de Kort, CEO of Thunes, who shared what it really takes to build a global payments network across 130+ markets, from wallets to banks to mobile rails.

🦉 Tweet of the Week

❝

Startups in Africa rely more on foreign capital than those in any other region

Out of every $1 raised by fintechs in Africa, for example, only 10¢ comes from local investors

This foreign dependence creates real vulnerabilities across the continent

➜ https://t.co/ceWbzhcIvf pic.twitter.com/qIFRNdaM4a— Emeka Ajene ✍🏽 (@eajene) August 1, 2025

🎯 Fintech Opportunities

  • Stablecon is hiring for Director of operations.

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