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As Africa ’s tech ecosystem godsend , more people from the region are landing remote jobs with Big Tech business firm and global startup . But getting paid persist a challenge for many of these independent and remote worker — they struggle to open account that take U.S. dollar and face tiresome invoicing and payment cognitive operation , and it does n’t assist when their foreign employer habituate antagonistic defrayment platforms .
Lagos - basedRaenestis one of the many African fintechs that have step in to address this problem . Through its retail intersection , Geegpay , Raenest offers freelancer virtual USD , GBP , and EUR accounts to receive payment , manage multi - currency wallets , and win over currencies . It also provides virtual and physical debit entry notice that accept multiple currencies like U.S. one dollar bill .
Last March , the company expanded its political program to cater to businesses to streamline international remittance with a new brand , Raenest for Business . Now the startup has raised $ 11 million in Series A support , led by QED Investors , to expand its reach across Africa .
Growth beyond freelancers
Interestingly , Raenest did n’t start with free-lance in nous . Victor Alade , along with co - foundersSodruldeen MustaphaandRichard Oyome , launched the company in 2022 as an Employer of Record ( EOR ) , helping extraneous fellowship pay African employees in compliance with local norm .
But a twosome of month in , the founders actualise the genuine problem did n’t lie with the companionship post defrayal — it was with individuals struggling to have them .
“ A U.S. society might not care if a payment is delay by five daylight , but for someone in Nigeria or Kenya , that ’s a bighearted deal — specially when converting to local currency becomes another hurdle , ” Alade , a former computer software technologist at Jumia and Andela , severalise TechCrunch .
draw from his remote work experience , Alade and his Centennial State - founders , who also play experience working with African fintechs like LemFi and FairMoney , pivoted to address this pain degree .
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Geegpay cursorily realize traction with freelancers , but business sign - ups began to rise as well . The squad realize that African company also needed strange account to streamline cross - border transactions . “ business bulge out asking if they could get fixed bank accounts to simplify payments . That ’s when we started thinking : How handsome is this opportunity ? Who else is building for Africa ? ” Alade state .
Raenest ’s addition of business enterprise banking could n’t have come at a better time . Around this time , U.S.-based fintechMercury started curtail patronage accountsfrom several countries , including parts of Africa . Meanwhile , rival in the EOR distance was heating up , with major player likeDeel starting to turn over serving the continentmore closely .
These issue spurred Raenest to incline into what it saw as a better chance : offering African business a way to experience and send outside payments .
A viable gambit
The stake seems to be pay off . Since launch in 2022 , Raenest has treat over $ 1 billion in payments — a 160 % increment over the past two years — to free-lance and businesses across the continent . Today , more than 700,000 individuals use the chopine to receive payments from planetary platforms like Upwork , Fiverr , and Gusto . They also employ it for online shopping and subscriptions .
On the enterprise side , over 300 companies swear on Raenest to collect requital from external client , enkindle capital from investors , and make cross - border payments . Its customer list includes startups like Moniepoint , Helium Health , Fez Delivery , and Matta .
Raenest competes with several fintech startups offering multi - currency accounts to customers in Africa , let in Afriex , Cleva , Fincra , Grey , VertoandLeatherback . Alade argues that Raenest has an edge because it place individuals and businesses , unlike most players that cater solely to one of those customer personas .
The fellowship ’s aspiration extend beyond crabbed - border payments . “ We want to create a safe and seamless financial ecosystem for Africans — helping them earn , invest , and grow their wealthiness , no matter where they are in the world , ” Alade say , hinting at approaching product launch .
Expansion plans
Currently , Raenest work in Nigeria under a money transfer license . As part of its increment program , the fellowship will look to deepen its mien in Nigeria and untroubled licenses in Egypt , Ghana , Kenya , and the U.S.
The company has banking partnership in the U.S. and U.K. , and it is also working to stop up more in these regions as it scales . Along the agency , the fellowship , which claim to be profitable , aim to appeal talent to stand its enlargement as it brings Geegpay and Raenest for Business under a single steel , Raenest .
The Series A cycle , which is coming after a $ 700,000 pre - germ and $ 2.6 million seed , brings Raenest ’s total funding to $ 14.3 million .
Lead investor QED , one of the world ’s top fintech VC firm , has been steady increase its footprint in Africa since 2022 . It has backed five fintech startups on the continent : Moniepoint , Remedial Health , Precium(formerly Revio),Cedar Money , and now Raenest .
“ We securely conceive that by bridging the spread between local and global securities industry , Raenest will unlock fresh opportunities for African entrepreneurs , independent and businesses , at long last driving great economic authorisation across the continent , ” suppose Gbenga Ajayi , partner and head of Africa and the Middle East at QED Investors .
Other investors in the round included Pan - African VC business firm Norrsken22 , Ventures Platform , P1 Ventures , and Seedstars .
