Afridigest Fintech Review: The impact of a free-trading naira on Nigeria's fintechs
Week 28 2023: July 9-15
Afridigest is your intelligent guide to Africa’s tech ecosystem. The Fintech Review is a weekly recap of what matters in African fintech.
And today’s edition is an especially strong one. But on to the week’s fintech highlights:
• Three equity fundraises announced this week.
• News of the week: Certain fintech segments may soon feel the burn of Nigeria's currency liberalization. Payments unicorn Flutterwave announced some big partnerships & launches. Ethiopia’s central bank leaned heavily into digital ID.
• Companies appearing in today’s Fintech Review: VaultPay, ExitsMENA, Menthum, Flutterwave, PesaPal, SokoHela, Fawry, & more.
• Executives appearing: FairMoney’s Laurin Nabuko Hainy, MTN South Africa’s Bradwin Roper, QED Investor’s Frank Rotman, MFS Africa’s Nika Naghavi, Julaya’s Mathias Léopoldie, Mukuru’s Tendai Tizirai, Creditinfo Group’s Kamau Kunyiha, OjirehPrime’s Edoka Idoko, Mastercard’s Mark Elliott, Accion Venture Lab’s Jasiel Martin-Odoom, TechCabal’s Abraham Augustine, & more.
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Week 28 2023: July 9-15
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📰 News of the WeekNigeria allowed its currency to trade freely a few weeks ago. And this week, it seemed the knock-on effects on certain fintechs and certain fintech business lines were front and center.
In Week 24, we highlighted this tweet (where BAT = Nigeria’s President Bola Ahmed Tinubu) as a potential harbinger of what was to come:
And there were a lot more discussions in that vein this week, including this:
Why? Well, it seems Nigerian banks are back in business.
Or to be more precise, back in certain businesses — like the business of allowing international payments with local currency cards.
And fintechs in the country that focused on providing workarounds (via e.g., virtual cards) might soon feel the burn.
But everything will be alright.
And, in fact, the same policy change might be a boon to other fintech business lines.
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