Until a few years ago, it was difficult to make payments to the border almost anywhere in the world. But it is still a big problem in Africa, where fragmented, disconnected systems, high fees and poor infrastructure make it difficult for businesses and individuals to carry money quickly and financially.
The majority of people and businesses are still based on outdated networks or dealing with mobile integration. However, there is a tangible demand for cheaper and easier alternatives, especially in areas not covered by Fragophone Africa.
The Guinea -based Fintech Bump It expresses its resolution, and recently increased funding of $ 3.5 million to continue to build payments that allow traders, banks, telecommunications operators and money carriers to move funds inside and outside Africa .
Cauridor says its platform supports mobile wallets, banking and cash through a network of more than 25,000 agents across Guinea, Senegal, C ivate coast, Sierra Leone and Liberia. These agents are part of a popular distribution method in the area-they are usually owners of small businesses equipped with Pos (POS) and allow cash deposits, withdrawals and bill payments.
Cauridor adopts a hybrid approach to resolve money transfer problem – in the same way that other fintechs in the area combine cash networks with digital infrastructure for local payment needs. Still, her approach has allowed to exploit remittances in basic markets such as Ghana and Nigeria and establish contracts at team levels with major players such as RIA, Moneygram and Western Union, along with corporate relationships with Orange and MTN .
From remittance to B2B payments
The founders of Cauridor Oumar Rafiou Barry and Abdoulaye bah Experienced firsthand the challenges of the mission of money back home to Guinea when they study in Canada. They faced slow, expensive remittances in Fragophone Africa, an area not served by the global remittance industry.
In 2019, this frustration led them to launch BNB CASHAPP, a platform for remittances that focus on consumers for users in Canada to send money to Africa. The app is directly integrated with banks, mobile wallets such as MTN and a network of agent equipped with a mobile gate to facilitate cash payments.
But as the platform increased, the founders faced a greater challenge: the fragmented and ineffective African payment infrastructure. “We realized early that the rails in Frankophonic Africa were almost non -existent. So we had to go and start making payment rails in the area, as the payments there were fragmented, “Managing Director Barry told TechCrunch.
Feeling an opportunity, the team revolved in 2022 to build payment rails for the area. By 2023, the company had merged the infrastructure of consumer remittances and the B2B payment infrastructure under the Cauridor brand, as well as the Tanzanian Nala and RAFIKI functional model.
The displacement has been rendered: More than 90% of the company’s revenue is now coming from payment businesses. In 2023, Cauridor processed 2 million transactions and recorded the total $ 300 million TPV, which increased to $ 500 million in 2024, the company said.
Competition and future plans
While Barry mentions more prominent players such as Onafriq (former MFS Africa) and Thunes as Cauridor’s main competition, he says his company remained relevant because he created the payment rails in the markets “No one saw”, such as Guinea and Liberia .
He noted that practical customer service and pricing also helped keep customers. Fintech provides customer service to resolve common issues such as dismissed mobile money transactions due to poor KYC. For example, if a recipient can only receive $ 10 from a $ 700 payment, Cauridor steps to help upgrade their account and ensure that the transaction passes.
Barry thinks that Cauridor’s strong local presence gives him an advantage to secure better forex margins, which he passes to his clients. He said this advantage helped the company attract large customers such as Moneygram, which changed from competitors for better prices and improved customer support.
Interestingly, competition in the cross -border payment area does not exclude cooperation. Some of the Cauridor competitors are based on its infrastructure in specific areas, just as it works with companies such as Thunes for worldwide.
Cauridor employs about 200 people worldwide and has offices on the coast of ivory, Senegal, Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia.
The seed tour was driven by the Pan-AFRICAN VC company Oui Capital and saw the participation from Rally Cap, BKR Capital and some Angel investors.
With fresh cash, the company plans to expand to new markets (it has new offices in Mali and Nigeria that opens this year), scan its teams and boost marketing efforts. Barry told TechCrunch that Cauridor is also preparing for a round of A series A and explores the incorporation of blockchain to rationalize the settlements and utilize the growing adoption of Stablecoins into the cross -border paying area of Africa.
