C-One Ventures, a Nigerian investment firm focused on tech and finance, has fully acquired Bankly, a licensed microfinance bank and fintech company. This deal will merge Bankly’s services, licenses, and workforce with other financial products under C-One Ventures.
The acquisition includes a restructuring phase to smoothly bring Bankly into the C-One Ventures ecosystem. Bankly’s CEO and co-founder, Tomilola Majekodunmi, will stay on in an advisory role to support the transition.
C-One Ventures already owns several finance-focused companies. These include Fulcrum, which helps Nigerian suppliers get working capital, GetPayed, a payment and banking app, and Gomoney, a digital bank offering easy-to-use financial tools. By adding Bankly, C-One Ventures plans to offer broader digital services for individuals and businesses.
Bankly’s Journey to Driving Financial Inclusion
Founded in 2018 by Tomilola Adejana and Fredrick Adams, Bankly started with a simple savings and transfer platform. Users could fund their accounts using vouchers in a model similar to mobile airtime top-ups.
Over the years, Bankly has focused on helping unbanked and low-income Nigerians access secure digital savings. It replaced informal systems like “ajo” or “esusu” with reliable financial tools.
One of its standout features is Group Savings, which allows people to save together with more trust and openness. The platform is easy to use and helps users reach their goals faster.
Bankly now provides services like savings, payments, and access to credit through its wide agent network. It also launched a microfinance bank to expand its reach even further.
With over 50,000 agents and more than 2 million customers across Nigeria, Bankly plays a key role in giving people, especially those in rural areas, better access to financial services.
In March 2024, Bankly raised $2 million in seed funding. Investors included Flutterwave, a top African payments company, and Vault, the parent company of fintech firm VANSO.
Majekodunmi said she is proud of Bankly’s progress over the last six years. She believes this acquisition will help the company grow and bring affordable financial solutions to even more Nigerians.
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One reply on “C-One Ventures Acquires Nigerian Fintech Bankly”
This acquisition marks a significant milestone for Bankly, showcasing its impact on financial inclusion in Nigeria. Transitioning into the C-One Ventures ecosystem will likely enhance its services and reach. It’s inspiring to see a homegrown fintech company achieve such success and continue to grow. The focus on affordable financial solutions aligns with Nigeria’s needs for accessible banking. How will this restructuring directly benefit the unbanked and low-income communities in the long term?