Nigerian fintech company, NowNow Digital Systems, has raised a $13 million seed round to enhance financial inclusion across Africa by providing financial services to various companies in Africa.
The fintech company says that the funding will assist it to bring in new products that will further improve its already existing consumer banking, agency banking, and merchant payment solutions.
Standard & Poor’s Global Financial Literacy Survey’s Data
Data from the Standard & Poor’s Global Financial Literacy Survey indicates that financial literacy across the world is low, as only 33% of adults globally are financially literate. The percentage of financially literate adults in African countries stands within the range of 26% (Nigeria) and 42% (South Africa).
An analysis and comparison with Europe, where the financial literacy ranges between 65%-75%, and the United States, which is 57% indicates that African adults might find it more challenging to create and maintain wealth than their Western neighbors.
Financial Literacy Report from CBN
A financial literacy report from the Central Bank of Nigeria states that the majority of Nigerian adults want to understand essential financial concepts in making informed decisions about saving, investing, and borrowing.
However, NowNow Digital Systems is in partnership with the Lagos Business School’s Sustainable Inclusive Digital Financial Services (SIDFS), a university-based research and advocacy program, to commence a financial education and literacy program aimed at driving financial inclusion in Nigeria.
NowNow Plan to Educate Its Customer
The fintech company intends to utilize data, library content, and resources obtained from SIDFS to provide and educate its customers with financial and digital literacy tools to ensure smart financial planning.
The founders, Sahir Berry and Mahesh Nair told our reporter that “NowNow differs from its competitors, such as Kuda and TeamApt because they have a proprietary infrastructure on their open API network and an open API network that other financial institutions use to provide access to different markets locally and internationally”.
NowNow’s Marketing Pattern
NowNow operates a B2B and a B2C market pattern to its consumers and small businesses. The company claims to have over 50,000 agents in Nigeria who assist customers to carry out different forms of transactions. Also, the company’s application enables its customers to have access to various services such as insurance, loans, and a wallet.
The funding was led by NeoVision Ventures Ltd., DLF Family Office, and Shadi Abdulhadi. A statement from the founders states that “these investors understood NowNow’s business model, the African market, and what is required to sustain growth in a challenging market”.
Recently, the fintech platform was selected to participate in the Mastercard Start Path Global program, created to help later-stage startups innovate and scale.
