UK-based fintech company NALA has raised $40 million in Series A funding to support its global expansion and improve the reliability of payments to Africa by developing its payment rails. This follows NALA’s previous round of fundraising in 2022, bringing the company’s total funding to over $50 million.
NALA aims to build payment solutions for the Next Billion, focusing on improving payments into Africa. By creating community-powered financial solutions, NALA facilitates day-to-day transactions and business operations in an increasingly global Africa. The NALA consumer money transfer app enables users to make secure and reliable payments from Europe, the UK, and the US to 11 African countries within seconds. Rafiki, its B2B platform, allows for lightning-fast payments to individuals and businesses across the African continent.
In the past 12 months, NALA achieved a 10x increase in revenue, reached profitability, and maintained positive cash flow. Over the last 20 months, the company saw a 34x increase in transaction volume. The NALA team has grown from seven members to over 100 and now serves 500,000 customers.
The $40 million funding round was led by Lauren Kolodny of Acrew Capital, with participation from previous investors DST Global and Amplo. New investors include Norrsken22, HOF Capital, and fintech founders such as Ryan King (co-founder of Chime), Vlad Tenev (co-founder of Robinhood), and the founder of Klarna.
Founder and CEO Benjamin Fernandes stated, “This $40 million funding round marks a pivotal moment for NALA. It will enable us to go beyond remittances and extend our reach beyond Africa, building a robust payments ecosystem. We’re reinvesting this money to enhance our infrastructure, ensuring reliable, low-cost payments for all. With the launch of our own payment rails and the expansion of our B2B platform Rafiki, we’re not just talking about change – we’re building it. We’ve got some bold, ambitious plans, give us a couple of years.”
The new funding will accelerate NALA’s global ambitions, focusing on expanding its consumer business beyond Africa and building services for the global migrant diaspora.
