When it comes to funding for mobile finance, e-commerce and even cryptocurrency ventures, Uganda fintech startups still lag behind those located in larger tech hubs in places such as Nigeria and Kenya.
Eversend, a Ugandan-led, mobile-only financial service, is among a plethora of apps across Africa experiencing rapid growth.
“We’re growing 30% in terms of gross revenue … moving about US$5M dollars every month,” says co-founder Ronald Kasendwa.
For new e-commerce business owners like Sandra Namakula, global payment systems can provide life-changing solutions. With DusuPay, she was able to create her own e-commerce store, fulfill orders from suppliers in China and collect payments from clients in neighboring countries all amid the pandemic. Crypto investments go mobile
Ntende knows first-hand the potential in East Africa but worries about the fintech bubble.
“Everyone tries to capture the opportunity, but only the strongest … will survive,” he says. For Kenneth Ntende, co-founder of Ugandan startup DusuPay, the biggest hurdle is figuring out a way to move towards a borderless payment system. “Africa is too fragmented in the world of payments,” he says.
Also read: The outlook for crypto and blockchain in Africa
“There’s a vote of confidence for the tech industry in Africa,” the GSMA head of sub-Saharan Africa, Akinwale Goodluck, tells CNN. “We’ve seen a lot of innovation coming out of Africa … and this attracts interest from Twitter, Facebook and Google.” The internet economy or “e-conomy” could add US$180B dollars to the region’s GDP by 2025, according to a report by Google and the International Finance Corporation.
“You can’t deny the fact that there’s mass adoption of cryptocurrencies,” he says. “We want to focus on making sure people can transact without killing their social norms … (while) building a networked community.”
Eversend’s Kasendwa says Africans will continue to create and adopt the latest tech.
With Facebook opening offices in South Africa and Nigeria this year, and Google and Twitter choosing Ghana for their regional headquarters, Twitter founder Jack Dorsey’s 2019 prediction that “Africa will define the future” seems ever closer to reality. With growing attention on cryptocurrency and in-app stock trading, companies including Uganda’s Eversend have started offering trading and crypto investments within their apps.
