Accion is a global nonprofit organization founded in 1961 and headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts. It focuses on increasing access to financial tools and services for underserved individuals and small businesses to promote financial inclusion. Accion catalyzes financial service providers to deliver affordable, high-quality solutions at scale, thereby helping communities thrive. The organization supports innovative fintech startups through its investment initiative, Venture Lab, which invests in early-stage companies that enhance financial access and improve service quality. Venture Lab provides both capital and strategic support, facilitating growth and operational efficiency for its portfolio companies. By engaging industry leaders and regulators, Accion challenges the financial sector to become more inclusive, ultimately working towards a world where everyone has the opportunity to improve their financial well-being.
Kuunda operates a B2B advisory platform that focuses on providing financial services tailored for developing economies. The company offers a range of tools, including liquidity management and data insight solutions, which help clients meet their financial requirements through a digital interface. By enabling users to access liquidity, Kuunda supports underserved agents, merchants, and consumers, facilitating their ability to maintain their standard of living, grow their businesses, and enhance economic resilience. Additionally, Kuunda's platform promotes increased network productivity and expands the distribution of products, yielding tangible and measurable results for its clients.
Developer of a digital insurance platform intended to integrate insurance into businesses. The company's platform allows easy integration across sectors to offer insurance products through a seamless digital experience, providing clients with automated underwriting, speeding up claims, reducing claims ratios, and increasing profitability.
Apollo Agriculture, founded in 2015 and based in Nairobi, Kenya, focuses on providing financial and technical support to smallholder farmers in emerging markets. The company offers farming loans to help farmers purchase essential inputs such as fertilizer, seeds, and crop insurance, along with access to expert consultations via mobile technology. By utilizing agronomic machine learning and remote sensing, Apollo tailors its services to individual farmers, assessing credit risk and customizing packages based on satellite and soil data, as well as crop yield models. This approach not only enhances the effectiveness of farming practices but also aims to significantly increase yields and profits for farmers.
Lumkani is a social enterprise based in South Africa that develops innovative early-warning IoT heat sensors aimed at mitigating the impact of fires in urban informal settlements, particularly in shacks. Founded in 2014, the company utilizes a heat detection technology that monitors temperature changes to detect fires. When a fire is detected, Lumkani's devices, which are networked to connect within a 60-meter radius, alert families in the vicinity, facilitating a swift community response. This technology not only reduces the risk of fire-related destruction but also aims to enhance safety and resilience in vulnerable urban areas.
LulaLend is more than a company. It’s a belief in the power of small business, making a difference, building a better solution and striving for excellence. We work hard to empower businesses across South Africa with the funds they need to grow, and we have a great time doing it!
Apollo Agriculture, founded in 2015 and based in Nairobi, Kenya, focuses on providing financial and technical support to smallholder farmers in emerging markets. The company offers farming loans to help farmers purchase essential inputs such as fertilizer, seeds, and crop insurance, along with access to expert consultations via mobile technology. By utilizing agronomic machine learning and remote sensing, Apollo tailors its services to individual farmers, assessing credit risk and customizing packages based on satellite and soil data, as well as crop yield models. This approach not only enhances the effectiveness of farming practices but also aims to significantly increase yields and profits for farmers.
GO Finance Company Limited, a Tanzanian non-bank financial institution, offers digital solutions to assess the credit risk of small and medium enterprise merchants. It offers GOBi, a mobile and cloud based financial record keeping tool, which collects transaction data of micro, small, and medium enterprises and use it to provide access to digital data for credit decision making compared to traditional banking methods. The company provides working capital finance to small businesses in local product distribution value chains in East Africa. GO Finance Company Limited is based in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
Umati Capital (Kenya) Limited is a non-bank financial institution established in 2012 and headquartered in Nairobi, Kenya. The company specializes in providing innovative financial solutions, particularly credit and payment technologies, to sectors such as agri-business supply chains, retailer value chains, and fast-moving consumer goods manufacturers. It aims to enhance access to finance for small-scale suppliers, trading companies, and industrial processors through its proprietary technology and branchless financial services. Additionally, Umati Capital offers a lending platform that includes invoice discounting and other working capital solutions tailored for small and medium-sized enterprises in East Africa, enabling them to secure necessary funding for growth.
Kopo Kopo Inc. is a merchant services platform based in Nairobi, Kenya, that facilitates mobile payment acceptance and provides additional services to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Established in 2010, the company leverages the M-PESA platform to help businesses, ranging from salons to restaurants, transition from cash-based transactions to digital payments. Kopo Kopo's secure platform enables real-time processing and analysis of mobile payments while offering a comprehensive online dashboard for managing transactions and settling funds directly into bank accounts. Additionally, the company provides targeted promotional and loyalty tools, enhancing customer engagement and supporting businesses in their growth. Kopo Kopo also offers a suite of tools for merchant acquirers, including banks and mobile network operators, further contributing to the advancement of digital economies in East Africa.