Close to $100-million of fundraising has been injected already in 2018 into Africa’s bourgeoning fintech and mobile payments sector, with a significant amount of capital still to be deployed this year, and prospects for the sector looking bullish, according to telecom, media and tech news and events company, TMT Finance.
Joseph d’Arrast, EMEA editor at TMT Finance, says: “The increasing demand for payment transaction and lending services are attracting investment from mobile operators, banks and international funds, all jostling to position themselves across the continent. These new initiatives also achieve inclusive goals set by international development finance institutions, which have been joining multiple fundraisings over the last 12 months.”
Demand for services are also tipped to see a large uptick: financial transactions made via the internet or a mobile phone are expected to grow from $200-million at the moment to an eyewatering $3-billion by 2020, according to a recent report by pan-African banking group Ecobank.
Regulation, access to reliable and affordable internet and the development of blockchain are also all key topics affecting Africa’s Fintech sector, according to d’Arrast.
“We expect B2B lending platforms and anti-fraud startups to attract most interest from investors. Venture capital funds are playing an important role – both local firms and international investors often originating from Europe or the US,” he says.