Nigerian fintech Moniepoint has reached “unicorn” status after raising $110 million from investors, including Google and London-based private equity firm Development Partners International (DPI).
This latest funding round has pushed Moniepoint’s valuation above $1 billion, a huge milestone in the startup ecosystem, where unicorns are defined as privately held companies valued over $1 billion and not publicly traded.
Moniepoint, founded in 2015 by Tosin Eniolorunda and Felix Ike, revealed the achievement in a statement on Tuesday, stating the new capital will accelerate its expansion across Africa.
“The capital raised will be used to accelerate Moniepoint’s growth across Africa, building an all-in-one, seamlessly integrated platform for African businesses of all sizes.
“This platform will include services such as digital payments, banking, foreign exchange, credit, and business management tools, making it a one-stop shop for business solutions,” the startup said.
The company aims to develop an all-inclusive platform for African businesses, offering digital payments, banking, foreign exchange, credit, and business management tools—a comprehensive solution designed for enterprises of all sizes.
Initially launched as TeamApt, Moniepoint started by providing payment solutions for banks and has since evolved into Nigeria’s leading business banking provider.
Currently, Moniepoint processes over 800 million transactions monthly, totalling more than $17 billion, and continues to operate profitably.
The Series C funding round was led by DPI’s African Development Partners III fund, which focuses on African investments.
Google’s Africa Investment Fund, Verod Capital, and existing investor Lightrock also contributed to the round.
The investment follows a period of substantial growth for Moniepoint, which entered the personal banking market in August 2023 via Moniepoint Microfinance Bank.
The bank has experienced 2,000% growth in personal finance customers over the past year and was recently recognised as Africa’s fastest-growing fintech by the Financial Times for the second year running.
