Cameroon-based fintech, Maviance PLC

Maviance Secures USD 3 Million Seed Investment from Onafriq

Maviance PLC (www.smobilpay.cm), a Cameroon-based fintech, announced today that it has closed its Seed investment round of USD 3 million from the pan-African digital payments hub Onafriq, which comes on board as a strategic investor. Maviance will be using the new funding to increase its footprint in Cameroon and to expand into other countries in the central African economic region (CEMAC).

Maviance chose Onafriq as an investor to leverage its pan-African infrastructure, vast product offering, and partnerships to deliver new digital financial products in the CEMAC region.

Empowering MSMEs Through Digital Financial Services

In Cameroon, micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) employ over 90% of the workforce and contribute around 36% of GDP. However, many MSMEs lack access to digital financial services to grow their businesses. Maviance, which serves over 500,000 unique customers a month, has connected key service providers, payment providers, financial institutions, and mobile money operators to its Smobilpay digital financial services platform. Smobilpay’s services help businesses improve their sales by encouraging their customers to transition from cash-based transactions to digital payments.

Expanding Across the CEMAC Region

Smobilpay empowers underserved MSMEs, agents, banks, and financial institutions’ customers within the CEMAC region with accessible digital financial solutions. Maviance’s growing network of agents and MSME partners offers their customers a wide array of digital financial services.

Leadership Insights on Expansion and Partnership

Jerry Cheambe, the founder of Maviance, said: “We are very excited about Maviance’s product pipeline and expansion. The opportunities within central Africa are huge, and the demand has been massively accelerated in the last 12 months with the advent of Covid-19. Moreover, the shift in mindset of regulators towards progressive regulations and alignment enables us to deliver seamless services across multiple geographies and customer segments.”

Onafriq’s founder and CEO, Dare Okoudjou, added: “The rapid development of digital financial services in Cameroon over the past few years is poised to spread across the CEMAC region. This will accelerate the demand for domestic and cross-border payments from MSMEs, social enterprises, and corporates. Maviance, with its relevant products, is well-positioned to benefit from this growing demand. We are thrilled to partner with the company to broaden and deepen the reach of the Onafriq Hub across Africa.”

Strategic Partnership to Accelerate Growth

Nkwenti Azong-Wara, CEO of Maviance, said: “With Onafriq, Maviance has gained not just a funding partner but a strategic investor who will enable us to extend our service portfolio and expand into the other five countries within the CEMAC region via the GIMACPAY switch.”

Meeting Growing Demand Post-COVID-19

Following the outbreak of COVID-19, Maviance has experienced increasing demand from businesses to digitise their payment processes. The partnership between Maviance and Onafriq will help MSMEs digitise their processes, allowing them to benefit from mobile money providers and other financial institutions offering seamless payments irrespective of the channel.

A Journey of Innovation: Maviance's Background

After founding Maviance in Germany in 2008, Jerry Cheambe and Michael Flach co-founded and launched Maviance Cameroon in 2012. As one of the pioneers of bill aggregation in the Cameroonian market, Maviance overcame initial resistance from service providers to establish its platform. Its first major contract with the national electricity provider paved the way for rapid expansion to include payment aggregation, mobile money integration, corporate payments, collections, and agent banking. Today, Maviance serves over 500,000 unique customers each month.

About Maviance PLC

Maviance PLC is a Cameroon-based digital financial services company enabling access to digital financial services for customers and businesses of all sizes. Maviance operates the largest digital financial services platform in central Africa, connecting agents, businesses, billers, merchants, and financial institutions. Smobilpay, its leading platform, facilitates integration with the central bank interoperability platform and supports businesses in their digital transformation.

About Onafriq

Onafriq is a leading pan-African fintech company, operating the largest digital payments hub on the continent. Connected to over 320 million mobile money wallets in sub-Saharan Africa, Onafriq allows merchants, banks, mobile operators, and money transfer companies to leverage mobile wallets as a safe and cost-effective transaction channel. Onafriq works to bring simple and secure financial services to underserved and unbanked customers, making borders matter less for millions across Africa and beyond.