Participated · Debt Financing · Nov 2021

MFS Africa, founded in 2009 by Dare Okoudjou, operates a pan‑African payments gateway that merges fragmented payment schemes to enable peer-to-peer and business transactions across borders. The platform supports a broad range of financial services including bank accounts, prepaid cards and virtual debit cards. It connects more than 320 million mobile money wallets across 35+ African countries and 700 corridors. The company has pursued inorganic growth via acquisitions such as Beyonic and the pending acquisition of Baxi, which provides access to over 90,000 agents in Nigeria. MFS plans to double down on regional expansion, open more offices across the continent and in the U.S. and China, and is working on interoperability between African and Chinese payment networks starting from Nigeria. It has moved its headquarters from Mauritius to London and intends to strengthen GRC, treasury and liquidity pools, hire more talent and continue investing in other African tech startups. MFS Africa is a Johannesburg-based mobile payments services provider founded in 2009 by Dare Okoudjou. The company has grown its network into a full‑range provider for digital payments across Africa, aiming to open financial services to those excluded from traditional banking. Its core product is mobile payments and digital-payments infrastructure that connects financial services players across the continent. The firm said the new investment will help better connect MFS Africa with opportunities and financial services players in Asia and boost cross‑border trade. Partners such as Equator Capital Partners and FSD Africa are expected to deepen links to global and regional financial institutions and support regulator and policymaker engagement. MFS Africa frames its work around a mission of financial inclusion for underserved customers. MFS Africa operates a digital payments network that provides a single access point for global organizations to reach and transact with millions of African consumers and businesses across networks, borders and currencies. Led by founder and CEO Dare Okoudjou, the company connects over 170 million mobile wallets through 100+ partners, including Airtel, Ecobank, MTN, Orange and Vodafone across 55 markets. The company has offices in Port Louis (Mauritius), Accra (Ghana), Douala (Cameroon), Lagos (Nigeria), London (United Kingdom) and Johannesburg (South Africa). MFS Africa raised $4.5m in a Series B round led by LUN Partners Group, with participation from Goodwell Investments and several angel investors. It intends to use the funds to accelerate the expansion of its network in Africa. As part of the deal, MFS Africa will work with LUN Partners Group, its portfolio companies, and investor base to boost financial inclusion in countries targeted by China’s ‘Belt and Road’ initiative.