West Africa: Mobile money company raises $200m
Wave, a mobile money provider in Senegal and Côte d’Ivoire, announced a series A investment of $200 million. The round was led by Sequoia Heritage, Founders Fund, Stripe and Ribbit. Former Y-Combinator CEO Sam Altman and existing investor Partech Africa also participated in the round. Following this investment, Wave is valued at $1.7 billion. It is the largest series A funding for a fintech in Africa.
Founded in 2018, Wave is building mobile money that is easy-to-use and affordable. The Wave app is similar to PayPal, but does not require a bank account. Wave runs a network of ”agents” – small local businesses – who use their cash on hand to service Wave users.
Wave offers a better experience from the incumbent telecom-led mobile money providers:
– All deposits and withdrawals at Wave agents are free. Wave users pay only 1% to send money – about 70% less than telecom-led mobile money.
– For users without a smartphone, Wave provides a free QR-card that allows anyone to transact with an agent.
Wave is the largest mobile money player in Senegal, its first market. Over half of the country’s adults are active Wave users. Wave is also growing rapidly in Côte d’Ivoire, propelling it to the top of the Google play store in both countries.
With the fundraise, Wave will expand into new African countries, like Uganda and Mali, and deepen its presence in its existing markets. Wave will also use the funds to enhance its digital offerings and expand its local operations and remote product, engineering and business teams. Wave currently employs 800 people.
“From day one, we’ve been relentlessly focused on building mobile money that’s easy-to-use and radically affordable. We’ve built something people love in Senegal, but that’s only the beginning – our mission is to bring a modern financial network to everyone in Africa,” said Drew Durbin, Wave CEO and founder.
“Wave is solving the root problem with financial services in Africa by making it easy and affordable for anyone to save and send money. They’ve built a product that millions of users love, and the engagement is on par with the top consumer tech companies in the world,” said Sam Altman.
“Since 2018 we’ve supported Wave because we were convinced mobile money is still an unsolved problem in Africa. Wave has great product design, stellar execution and a strong financial trajectory. We are proud to see it become the first unicorn from Senegal. This funding is a game changer in helping Wave bring a better mobile money service across Africa,” said Tidjane Deme, Partech general partner and Africa Fund co-lead.
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