Bitmama, a Nigerian blockchain payments company, raises $2 million in a pre-seed round as it expands to new markets
The cryptocurrency industry in Africa is expanding at the third-fastest rate in the world. The amount of people making use of crypto has increased by over 1,200% during the past two years. The increasing adoption rates may mostly be attributed to countries like Nigeria, Kenya, and South Africa. This is because citizens are attempting to hedge against a possible depreciation of their currency by amassing wealth.
Most crypto and blockchain firms are located in African countries despite the fact that African governments hold widely varying opinions on cryptocurrency. Bitmama, one such company, has reportedly just acquired an additional $1.65 million in pre-seed capital. Additional to the $350,000 it received in October, bringing the grand total to $2 million.
Bitmama was funded by two African VC companies, Unicorn Growth Capital and Launch Africa. There are also angel investors like Rene Reinsberg, Marek Olszewski, and Honey Ogundeyi, as well as venture capital firms including Adaverse, Flori Ventures, Tekedia Capital, GreenHouse Capital, ODBA, Five35 Ventures, Chrysalis Capital, Enrich Africa, Thrive Africa, and Angellist Ventures.
The organization, which has offices in the United States and Nigeria, has assembled a remote workforce in the three African countries of Nigeria, Ghana, and Kenya. The company claims it is employing blockchain-based solutions to democratize Africa's financial system.
Africa's first blockchain-based payment service was founded this year by CEO Ruth Iselema. Company CTO Adam Umar reports to Chief Operating Officer Akinbola Asalu. According to the founders, Bitmama started off as a WhatsApp group where users could ask questions and conduct transactions using cryptocurrencies like bitcoin. Then, they developed a cryptocurrency exchange platform to provide these individuals with institutionalized entry to virtual assets and to enable them to experiment with various use cases, such as the purchase and sale of virtual currency, the exchange of virtual currency, and P2P transactions. Recently, the business launched Changera, a social payment solution that facilitates the usage of stablecoins for international purchases on sites like Netflix and Amazon utilizing virtual cards.
