Kuunda has closed a $7.5 million pre-Series A round to accelerate its expansion across Africa and the Middle East, beginning with Egypt. The company says the fresh capital will help build infrastructure for inclusive digital lending while enabling partner banks and fintechs to lend sustainably. Management frames the raise as a step toward unlocking access to productive finance for agents, merchants, small businesses, and consumers.
Funding Round and Investors
Participation came from Portugal Gateway Fund, Seedstars Africa Ventures, 4Di Capital, Accion Ventures, Nedbank, and E4E Africa, with Nedbank joining as a strategic investor. The backing aligns with Nedbank’s increasing focus on fintech partnerships and signals confidence in Kuunda’s embedded-finance approach. Kuunda announced the completion of the round on social media, positioning it as fuel for multi-market growth and product development.
Product and Business Model
Founded in 2018 by Andy Milne, Sam Brawerman, and Morne van der Westhuizen, Kuunda provides embedded lending infrastructure for banks, mobile network operators, and digital platforms. Its technology allows partners to offer short-term liquidity products within their ecosystems, including mobile money float loans, airtime top-ups, stock financing, and merchant cash advances. The company operates a capital and license-light model by partnering with regulated institutions rather than lending from its own balance sheet.
Market Need and Mission
Kuunda targets cash-flow gaps that constrain agents, MSMEs, and end consumers across emerging markets. “We are unlocking access to finance for Africa’s productive class, the agents, merchants, and small businesses that are the backbone of these economies, whilst helping consumers build resilience by accessing credit when they need it,” said Milne, co-founder and co-CEO. Seedstars Africa Ventures’ Bruce Nsereko-Lule added that embedded working-capital products can unlock liquidity exactly where commerce happens, at the edge.
Egypt Entry and MENA Expansion
Egypt is the company’s immediate priority, underpinned by a large point-of-sale market estimated at $115.7 billion and projected to grow annually by 8.3 percent. Kuunda plans to partner with local e-commerce platforms and PoS network providers to embed lending products for merchants and users. After Egypt, the company is eyeing Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Morocco for further expansion.
Competitive Landscape and Execution Hurdles
The expansion places Kuunda in competition with established digital lenders and payments platforms such as MNT-Halan and Fawry, as well as newer SME-focused players like Flend. Milne acknowledges scaling challenges that include product approvals, integration with partner infrastructure, and the language and cultural differences that come with entering new regions. He argues the partnership-led model provides a cost-efficient route to market and lowers barriers to entry across jurisdictions.
Traction and Partnerships
Kuunda says it has supported partners in disbursing more than $3 billion in loans to date. The company reports enabling over $100 million in monthly credit to more than two million customers through bank and platform partners. It has grown from early operations in Tanzania and Pakistan to Uganda, Malawi, Kenya, and Mozambique, partnering with organizations such as M-Pesa Tanzania, Airtel Africa, and OneLoad Pakistan.
Strategic Significance for Investors
For investors like Nedbank, the deal complements a broader strategy to enhance digital services and distribution across African markets. Strategic stakes in embedded finance providers can extend a bank’s reach into agent networks, merchant bases, and platform economies without heavy balance-sheet deployment. Kuunda’s infrastructure-as-a-service positioning offers investors exposure to lending demand while relying on regulated partners for origination and compliance.
Outlook and Next Steps
With capital secured, near-term priorities are technical integrations, new product rollouts for MSMEs, and onboarding e-commerce and PoS partners in Egypt. Success will hinge on converting pilot programs into scaled portfolios and maintaining credit performance as volumes grow. Regulatory navigation and localization will remain pivotal as Kuunda moves from East Africa into the wider MENA corridor.
Kuunda’s pre-Series A round gives the company room to push its embedded liquidity model into larger, faster-growing markets. The combination of strategic and venture investors suggests an appetite for infrastructure that brings credit closer to the point of transaction. Execution in Egypt and subsequent MENA entries will test whether a capital and license-light approach can scale profitably while widening access to finance for millions of small businesses and consumers.