About Beyonic
Beyonic is a digital payments platform that facilitates payments integration across the African continent by integrating all telecoms in Uganda and in other African countries where it operates. Thus, once one connects to the Beyonic platform, they will have access to all the networks across all countries where it operates, enabling access through a single log-in. The countries include Uganda, Ghana, Rwanda, Tanzania and Kenya, among others. “When you log-in into that account as a business, you can effect payment to as many people as you would like to or receive payments from as many people as you would like to,” Lukandwa says. A few months ago, Beyonic merged with MFS Africa, enabling it to increase the number of markets available for businesses to operate across the continent. According to Lukandwa, MFS Africa’s primary vision is to make cross-border transactions easy by easing payment methods. “To us making borders  matters less doesn’t just mean allowing your business go to many other markets but also things like equality, with gender being one of them,” she notes, adding that Beyonic/MFS Africa is women centric, with over 53% of its employees being women. The FinTech is also deliberate at making more women-owned and led businesses access their platform to enable their businesses to thrive. 40 Days 40 FinTechs
Beyonic is one of the firms participating in the second edition of the 40-Days 40 FinTechs , organized by HiPipo in partnership with Crosslake Technologies, ModusBox and Mojaloop Foundation, and sponsored by the Gates Foundation. Lukandwa applauded HiPipo for the initiative, saying that it has provided a platform to aggregate information and players in the ecosystem to create awareness about available solutions to address market challenges. She, however, notes that while Uganda is extremely entrepreneurial, this needs to be matched with the opportunity to scale and advance these enterprises. “One of the areas in which we are lacking is reducing the cost of operations and scale; for  a lot of these businesses, it is very expensive for them to have startup capital, employ staff, maintain these businesses and building capacity on best business practices. These are some of the primary loopholes where I think we need to get together as stakeholders to agree on what we want to achieve and how to achieve it and I think consolidating efforts around KYC would be key.”
The HiPipo Chief Executive Officer Innocent Kawooya applauds Beyonic, saying it has played a great financial inclusion across Africa, as its products and services are impacting thousands of people at the last mile. He adds that FinTech in Africa offers attractive opportunities and that investors are rightfully picking interest in the various startups offering a plethora of services, ranging from payments and lending, remittances and cross-border transfers, among others. Currently, Beyonic can be accessed through its website or through social media, Facebook, WhatsApp, Twitter, and Instagram as its offices are currently closed due to the lockdown but will be reopened once it is lifted. Instant settlements put Beyonic a notch higher in the market

Instant settlements put Beyonic a notch higher in the market

Ugandan fintech startup Numida raises $2.3m seed round to expand, launch new products
Ugandan fintech startup Numida has raised a US$2.3 million seed funding round led by MFS Africa to help it expand aggressively and launch new products. Launched by Mina Shahid, Catherine Denis and Ben Best in 2017, Numida began life enabling traditional MFIs to provide unsecured credit to semi-formal businesses, but pivoted 18 months ago to begin lending to micro and small businesses directly. Through the Numida mobile app, business owners can access unsecured working capital loans of up to US$3,500 in less than two hours. Thanks to a proprietary credit score, Numida offers risk-based pricing on an applicant’s first loan such that every business owner is treated uniquely. So far, Numida has provided more than US$2 million in unsecured credit to 3,000 micro and small businesses in Uganda with outstanding collections, repayment rates, and client retention. It has now closed a US$2.3 million seed round led by pan-African payments leader MFS Africa , with participation from DRK Foundation, Equilibria Capital, and Segal Family Foundation alongside angel investors. With this new financing, Numida plans to expand aggressively in Uganda and pilot in a new market. “With all the data that we’re collecting from traditionally thin-file businesses, we are well-positioned to provide additional financial services through the Numida app such as payments, micro-insurance, and deposits in the future,” said Numida’s chief executive officer (CEO) Mina Shahid. Numida will tap into MFS Africa’s pan-African experience and use its infrastructure, including its recent acquisition of digital payments aggregator Beyonic , to launch new digital financial products for micro and small businesses. Patrick Gutmann, a managing director at MFS Africa who led the deal, said the acquisition of Beyonic had significantly expanded MFS Africa’s business in the East African region and broadened its portfolio of services by adding a cutting-edge payment proposition targeting the SME segment. “MFS Africa is committed to supporting this critical segment, and offering a lending solution is a natural extension of our services, and by partnering with Numida, this can become a reality. Numida has been a long-standing partner of MFS Africa, and we have followed its progress with much excitement,” he said. “We see tremendous opportunity for Numida and MFS Africa to work together to grow Numida’s existing loan book in Uganda, but also see an opportunity for the solution to be extended across the MFS Africa footprint.”

Ugandan fintech startup Numida raises $2.3m seed round to expand, launch new products

Ugandan fintech Numida secures $2.3-million 
Numida closes USD 2.3 million seed round led by MFS Africa
The fintech plans to utilise the funding to expand in Uganda, to pilot its product offering in a new market, and launch new products. Numida will tap into MFS Africa’s pan-African experience and utilise its infrastructure to launch new digital financial products for SMMEs. Patrick Gutmann, a Managing Director of MFS Africa comments on the investment made into the innovative fintech. “Through its recent acquisition of Beyonic, MFS Africa significantly expanded its business in the East African region and broadened its portfolio of services by adding a cutting-edge payment proposition targeting the SME segment. MFS Africa is committed to supporting this critical segment, and offering a lending solution is a natural extension of our services, and by partnering with Numida, this can become a reality. Numida has been a long-standing partner of MFS Africa, and we have followed its progress with much excitement. We see tremendous opportunity for Numida and MFS Africa to work together to grow Numida’s existing loan book in Uganda, but also see an opportunity for the solution to be extended across the MFS Africa footprint.” 
Numida
Founded in 2016 by Mina Shahid, Catherine Denis, and Ben Best, the fintech startup provides unsecured digital loans to African small businesses. According to reports, nearly 130-million micro and small businesses in Africa are in desperate need of modern digital banking services. Many of these businesses are financially excluded and unable to access credit and other financial services. This is where Numida steps in and has created a unique product that offers a much-needed financial service to small business owners. The fintech has created East Africa’s first digital financial institution that targets semi-formal micro and small businesses. Operating via an easy-to-use app, business owners can access unsecured working capital loans of up to $ 3 500. Numida claims that small business owners can access this loan capital in under two hours via the app. Numida bases its loan to a client on a proprietary credit score. Each client is provided a loan with risk-based pricing based on their credit score. The fintech claims to have provided over $2-million in unsecured credit to 3000 micro and small businesses in Uganda with outstanding collections, repayment rates, and client retention. Mina Shahid, CEO of Numida explains that the fintech plans to expand its product offering. “With all the data that we’re collecting from traditionally thin-file businesses, we are well-positioned to provide additional financial services through the Numida app such as payments, micro-insurance, and deposits in the future.”

Ugandan fintech Numida secures $2.3-million

Uganda-based fintech startup Numida  has secured $2.3-million in a seed funding round led by MFS Africa with participation from DRK Foundation, Equilibria Capital, and Segal Family Foundation alongside angel investors. Numida closes USD 2.3 million seed round led by MFS Africa
The fintech plans to utilise the funding to expand in Uganda, to pilot its product offering in a new market, and launch new products. Numida will tap into MFS Africa’s pan-African experience and utilise its infrastructure to launch new digital financial products for SMMEs. Patrick Gutmann, a Managing Director of MFS Africa comments on the investment made into the innovative fintech. “Through its recent acquisition of Beyonic, MFS Africa significantly expanded its business in the East African region and broadened its portfolio of services by adding a cutting-edge payment proposition targeting the SME segment. MFS Africa is committed to supporting this critical segment, and offering a lending solution is a natural extension of our services, and by partnering with Numida, this can become a reality. Numida has been a long-standing partner of MFS Africa, and we have followed its progress with much excitement. We see tremendous opportunity for Numida and MFS Africa to work together to grow Numida’s existing loan book in Uganda, but also see an opportunity for the solution to be extended across the MFS Africa footprint.” 
Numida
Founded in 2016 by Mina Shahid, Catherine Denis, and Ben Best, the fintech startup provides unsecured digital loans to African small businesses. According to reports, nearly 130-million micro and small businesses in Africa are in desperate need of modern digital banking services. Many of these businesses are financially excluded and unable to access credit and other financial services. This is where Numida steps in and has created a unique product that offers a much-needed financial service to small business owners. The fintech has created East Africa’s first digital financial institution that targets semi-formal micro and small businesses. Operating via an easy-to-use app, business owners can access unsecured working capital loans of up to $ 3 500. Numida claims that small business owners can access this loan capital in under two hours via the app. Numida bases its loan to a client on a proprietary credit score. Each client is provided a loan with risk-based pricing based on their credit score. The fintech claims to have provided over $2-million in unsecured credit to 3000 micro and small businesses in Uganda with outstanding collections, repayment rates, and client retention. Mina Shahid, CEO of Numida explains that the fintech plans to expand its product offering. “With all the data that we’re collecting from traditionally thin-file businesses, we are well-positioned to provide additional financial services through the Numida app such as payments, micro-insurance, and deposits in the future.”

Meet the 12 winners of this year’s AppsAfrica Awards
Meet the 12 winners of this year’s AppsAfrica Awards
Twelve startups have been named winners of the AppsAfrica Awards 2020, which celebrate the best in mobile and tech from across Africa. The AppsAfrica Awards strive to showcase leading ventures from across the continent each year and provide winners with industry recognition, global publicity, and potential investment. Winners are also invited to join Africa Tech Summit in 2021, connecting with tech leaders, corporates and investors at the African and European Summits. The sixth edition of the awards attracted over 500 submissions from 51 countries, with solutions launched by startups, established ventures, and corporates, and for the first time were held online. The winners are:
Best African App – Carry1st (South Africa)
Cybersecurity Award – Sendmarc (South Africa)
Blockchain Award – Luno (South Africa)
Media & Entertainment – myFanPark (South Africa)
EdTech Award – Xhuma (South Africa)
Agri & FoodTech Award – ComX (Nigeria)
FinTech Award – Beyonic (Uganda)
eCommerce Award – Sokowatch (Kenya)
Mobility Award – Kobo360 (Nigeria)
“This year saw a big increase of entries from sectors currently booming due to the effects of the pandemic, including HealthTech, Edtech, Gaming, Fintech, eCommerce and many COVID-19 related entries with many great investment opportunities. Congratulations to all the AppsAfrica Awards winners. We look forward to seeing them at Africa Tech Summit next year. A special word of thanks to all the entrants, our expert judging panel, sponsors and supporting partners across Africa who help make this happen,” said Andrew Fassnidge, founder of AppsAfrica. Facebook

Meet the 12 winners of this year’s AppsAfrica Awards

Insure Small Small is on a mission to build an inclusive protection ecosystem for the forgotten consumer with micro-insurance products and technology as an enabler.

Insure Small Small

Boss Money focuses on virtual banking services for cross-border transactions. The company offers a secure platform for storing, exchanging, and transferring funds internationally without the need for traditional banking infrastructure. Boss Money caters primarily to populations such as refugees, migrants, and individuals without access to conventional banking services. Boss Money was formerly known as Leaf Global Fintech. It was founded in 2017 and is based in Evergreen, Colorado. In March 2022, Boss Money was acquired by IDT.

Boss Money

Mobile Accord creates mobile services for clients around the world. Through its technology and network partners, the company powers the mobile activities of businesses, NGOs, and nonprofits. The company's GeoPoll (www.research.geopoll.com) is a real-time mobile survey platform, reaching a growing network of more than 50 million users in 20 countries worldwide on a deeply granular level and at unprecedented scale. Through partnerships with telecom providers and a multimodal platform powered by text, voice and web-based communications, GeoPoll enables companies and organizations to gather quick, accurate and in-depth insights on anything from preferences on consumer goods to election transparency and access to basic government services. Mobile Accord's mGive is a mobile donation platform and experts in powering mobile insights across the globe.

Mobile Accord

Mercy Corps is a global nonprofit organization. It provides humanitarian assistance to people affected by conflict, disaster, poverty, and climate change. The organization was founded in 1979 and is based in Portland, Oregon.

Mercy Corps

Beyonic

DFS Lab

The University of Texas at Austin

Water Street Glassworks

Purdue University

TVS Motor Company

Companies and startups in this collection provide technology to streamline, improve, and transform financial services, products, and operations for individuals and businesses.

Fintech

Acquired

Beyonic is a technology company that aims to eliminate the rampant use of cash in emerging markets. Beyonic's partnerships with mobile network operators and digital financial service providers across Africa enable businesses to quickly deploy and manage 2-way mobile money payments. Via secure, web-based services and robust APIs, its customers access enterprise-level payee and workflow management to reduce fraud and increase transparency across their operations.

On June 30, 2020, Beyonic was acquired by MFS Africa. The terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.

Date	Round	Amount	Investors	Valuation Valuations are submitted by companies, mined from state filings or news, provided by VentureSource, or based on a comparables valuation model.	Revenue	Sources
6/30/2020	Acquired		Onafriq	$XXM	0 FY undefined	6
4/5/2016	Seed	$XXM	Subscribe to see more	$XXM	0 FY undefined	10
10/29/2015	Unattributed	$XXM	Subscribe to see more	$XXM	0 FY undefined	10

Date	6/30/2020	4/5/2016	10/29/2015
Round	Acquired	Seed	Unattributed
Amount		$XXM	$XXM
Investors	Onafriq	Subscribe to see more	Subscribe to see more
Valuation	$XXM	$XXM	$XXM
Revenue	0 FY undefined	0 FY undefined	0 FY undefined
Sources	6	10	10

First funding	Last Funding	Investor	Rounds	Board Seats	Type	Location
6/30/2020	6/30/2020	Onafriq	1 Acquired		Corporation	South Africa
00/00/0000	00/00/0000	Barclays Accelerator	Subscribe to see more		Incubator/Accelerator	United Kingdom

First funding	6/30/2020	00/00/0000
Last Funding	6/30/2020	00/00/0000
Investor	Onafriq	Barclays Accelerator
Rounds	1 Acquired	Subscribe to see more
Board Seats
Type	Corporation	Incubator/Accelerator
Location	South Africa	United Kingdom

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