When it comes to funding for mobile finance, e-commerce and even cryptocurrency ventures, Uganda’s fintech companies still lag behind those located in large tech hubs in places like Nigeria and Kenya.
Eversend, a Uganda-driven, mobile-only financial service, is among a plethora of applications across Africa experiencing rapid growth.
“We are growing 30% in terms of gross revenues … moving about $5 million a 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 set up her own e-commerce store, fulfill orders from suppliers in China, and collect payments from customers in neighboring countries, all in the midst of the pandemic. Crypto investments go mobile
Ntende knows first-hand the potential of Africa, “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 toward a borderless payment system. “Africa is too fragmented in the payments world,” he says.
With increasing attention on cryptocurrency trading companies including Uganda’s Eversend have begun offering trading and crypto investments within their applications
“There’s a vote of confidence for the tech industry in Africa,” GSMA head of sub-Saharan Africa Akinwale Goodluck tells CNN. “We’ve seen a lot of innovation coming out of Africa … and this is attracting interest from Twitter, Facebook and Google.” The Internet economy or “e-conomy” could add $180B 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 is 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 technology.
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 increasing attention on cryptocurrency trading companies including Uganda’s Eversend have begun offering trading and crypto investments within their apps.
