Until a couple of years in the past, it was troublesome to make funds throughout borders nearly wherever on the earth. But it’s nonetheless an enormous drawback in Africa, the place fragmented, disconnected programs, excessive charges, and poor infrastructure make it robust for companies and people to maneuver cash shortly and affordably.
The majority of individuals and companies nonetheless depend on outdated agent networks or grapple with cell pockets integrations. But there’s tangible demand for cheaper and simpler alternate options, significantly 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 cost rails that permit retailers, banks, telecom operators, and cash switch firms transfer funds out and in of Africa.
Cauridor says its platform helps cell wallets, financial institution transfers, and money pickups by 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 methodology within the area — they’re often small enterprise house owners geared up 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 manner different fintechs within the area mix money networks with digital infrastructure for native cost wants. Still, 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 akin 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 first-hand the challenges of sending a reimbursement 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 start out 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 geared up with a cell portal to facilitate money payouts.
But because the platform grew, the founders encountered a bigger problem: Africa’s fragmented and inefficient cost infrastructure. “We realized early on that the rails in Francophone Africa have been nearly non-existent. So we needed to go in and begin constructing cost rails within the area because the funds there have been fragmented,” CEO Barry instructed TechCrunch.
Sensing a possibility, the group pivoted in 2022 to construct cost rails for the area. By 2023, the corporate had merged its client remittance enterprise and B2B cost infrastructure below the Cauridor model, very similar to Tanzania’s Nala and Rafiki’s operational mannequin.
The shift paid off: Over 90% of the corporate’s income now comes from its cost rails enterprise. In 2023, Cauridor processed 2 million transactions and recorded complete cost quantity (TPV) of $300 million, which grew to $500 million in 2024, the corporate stated.
Competition and future plans
While Barry references extra outstanding gamers like Onafriq and Thunes as Cauridor’s important competitors, he says his firm has remained related as a result of it constructed cost rails in markets “nobody was ,” like Guinea and Liberia.
He famous that hands-on customer support and pricing have additionally helped it retain prospects. The fintech offers customer support to resolve frequent points like rejected cell cash transactions resulting from incomplete KYC. For instance, if a recipient can solely obtain $10 out of a $700 cost, Cauridor steps in to assist improve their account and make sure the transaction goes by.
Barry thinks Corridor’s sturdy native presence provides it an edge in securing higher foreign exchange margins, which it passes on to its prospects. He stated this benefit has helped the corporate appeal to main shoppers like MoneyGram, which switched from opponents for higher charges and improved buyer help.
Interestingly, competitors within the cross-border funds house doesn’t rule out collaboration. Some of Cauridor’s opponents depend on its infrastructure in particular areas, simply because it companions with firms like Thunes for a world 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 recent 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 instructed TechCrunch that Cauridor can also be making ready for a Series A spherical and exploring blockchain integration to streamline settlements and faucet into the rising adoption of stablecoins in Africa’s cross-border cost house.
