Global Shop Group has acquired ANKA, the Ivorian e-commerce company formerly known as Afrikrea, for an undisclosed sum. The New York-based buyer, led by CEO Matilda Ceesay, confirmed the deal in a customer communication cited in media reports. The transaction aims to expand Global Shop’s reach across African fashion and the global Black and African diaspora consumer markets.
Deal Overview
Ceesay said she acquired ANKA because of its role connecting African and diaspora creators with customers worldwide. She framed the move as a plan to strengthen ANKA for sellers by attracting more customers, simplifying operations, and elevating visibility. The acquisition keeps ANKA’s staff and day-to-day operations intact, while ownership and executive leadership shift to Global Shop.
Strategic Rationale
Global Shop plans to lean on ANKA’s payment rails, logistics integrations, and seller storefront tools as the operational backbone of a broader fashion strategy. By pairing Global Shop’s global ambition with ANKA’s infrastructure, the combined company seeks to scale brands that resonate with communities across Africa and its diaspora. Ceesay positioned ANKA as a platform that will become more supportive for creators while improving the buyer experience.
ANKA’s Evolution
Founded in 2016, ANKA emerged as a standout in Francophone Africa by tackling payment, logistics, storefront, and marketplace bottlenecks for SMEs and designers. The company originally operated as Afrikrea, a marketplace that processed more than 60 million dollars in transactions and reached one million monthly visits. Before the rebrand, Afrikrea reported revenue growth to 4.1 million dollars, reflecting rising demand for African fashion and crafts.
Pivot to SaaS
Over a year ago, Afrikrea rebranded as ANKA and pivoted from a pure marketplace to a software-as-a-service model. The platform combined marketplace listings with international payments and global shipping to reduce friction for sellers. Co-founder Moulaye Taboure said the shift quadrupled payment volume and helped the business reach breakeven.
Leadership Changes
As part of the acquisition, ANKA’s founders, Luc B. Perussault Diallo, Moulaye Taboure, and Kadry Diallo, have exited their executive roles. Ceesay will replace them while emphasizing continuity with the existing team and product roadmap. She credited the founders’ experience and said their lessons will inform ANKA’s next phase under Global Shop.
Platform Capabilities
In its current form, ANKA provides an integrated toolkit that lets African sellers list products, accept international payments, and ship worldwide with lower friction. The stack is designed to reduce operational complexity for small brands that often face cross-border hurdles. These capabilities position the platform as a partner for creators who want to formalize sales and grow beyond local markets.
Market Position and Momentum
ANKA previously attracted more than 13 million dollars in funding from backers that included the International Finance Corporation. The company’s rebrand from Afrikrea aimed to broaden its scope from a single marketplace to a full service commerce stack. That evolution aligns with Global Shop’s stated plan to power and scale culturally resonant fashion brands at international scale.
Stakeholder Perspectives
Taboure said Global Shop brings strategy depth, fashion expertise, and a global network that can help ANKA reach the next level. Ceesay described the acquisition as a commitment to invest in ANKA’s mission and enhance support for creators. Both framed the transaction as an inflection point for a platform serving African sellers and their global customers.
Outlook
With ANKA’s infrastructure and Global Shop’s distribution ambitions, the combined entity will focus on growth across key diaspora markets. Success will hinge on deepening logistics efficiency, strengthening payment reliability, and accelerating customer acquisition for sellers. Maintaining product quality and brand storytelling will also be critical to sustaining buyer trust and repeat purchases.
Global Shop’s purchase of ANKA formalizes a bet on African fashion as a global growth category. The integration of ANKA’s SaaS-driven payments, logistics, and storefronts with Global Shop’s network could set a higher operational bar for creators. If execution matches intent, the platform may become a stronger springboard for African brands seeking scale and international reach.
Source: Techcabal