French-speaking Africa is finally taking a step into fintech. Julaya, the Ivorian fintech startup recently concluded its pre-Series A round with a huge capital raise and the participation of the Chelsea and Senegal superstar.
Edouard Mendy, the Senegalese footballer participates in the series A of Julaya
Julaya is a fintech payments startup based in Ivory Coast. Recently, it concluded its pre-Series A round with an additional $5 million capital raise. The startup’s funding round now stands at $7 million with this latest round.
The latter was led by Speedinvest, a European venture capital fund. He was able to count on many collaborators. Among others, Kibo Ventures, EQ2 Ventures as well as angel syndicates Jedar Capital and Unpopular Ventures. Julaya already has many investors who have also participated in this cycle.
Among the latter, 50 Partners, Saviu and Orange Ventures. A few days ago, the Senegalese goalkeeper who is currently playing at Chelsea joined rows. Indeed, the latter participated in Julaya’s pre-series A round table.
Go beyond its services for a better return?
Fintech is an uncommon term in French-speaking Africa. For this reason, Julaya could well find herself facing an incredible challenge. According to the statements of the CEO and co-founder of the startup published by Techcrunch, using standard card services is making all the difference for mobile money users in West Africa.
However, Mathias Leopoldie thinks it is important to diversify services other than regular card services. Indeed, the CEO asserts that the card payment strategy is to offer a wide range of services.
According to him, it is almost impossible to develop a business based solely on standard card services in French-speaking Africa. He also spoke about the participation of Edouard Mendy. According to him, this shows how far he is ahead of his time.
Africa is slowly but effectively integrating new technologies. Even if French-speaking Africa is still reticent about card payment services, the founders of Julaya remain convinced that they will eventually adopt them. The participation of Edouard Mendy is already a big advantage. According to the CEO, the fact that the latter is Senegalese could also encourage other Africans to follow in his footsteps and become investors.
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