4DX Ventures and Flutterwave make first Francophone Africa investment, pumps $2.4 million in CinetPay

CinetPay, a digital payment platform for merchants in Francophone Africa today announced a $2.4 million seed round from Flutterwave and 4DXVentures.

Launched in Côte d’Ivoire by Idriss Monthe and Daniel Dindji in 2016, CinetPay has processed over 30 million transactions for 350 active merchants in nine countries, including Côte d'Ivoire, Senegal, Cameroon, Mali, Togo, Burkina Faso, Benin and Guinea.

With this investment,  CinetPay’s sales and marketing efforts across nine markets in West and Central Africa will be enhanced.

The platform provides a single interface for businesses to process over 130 different payment operators, from mobile money to credit and debit cards and e-wallets, eliminating the need for merchants to spend months integrating with different systems in order to manage sales and revenues.

Used by a broad range of businesses from e-commerce platforms to digital public services, insurance companies and schools, CinetPay simplifies the process of accepting payments online or via mobile Point of Sale (PoS) devices with best in class security protocols.

For Flutterwave and 4DX Ventures, this is the first direct investment they have made in the Francophone region.

Commenting on the investment, Idriss Marcial Monthe, CEO & Co-Founder of CinetPay stated that, "for a first institutional investment, we couldn’t have asked for two better partners in 4DX Ventures and Flutterwave. We’ve watched firsthand as thousands of merchants waste crucial time, even up to 6 months, getting their payment systems in order".

"Now we’ve got the resources to market and sell our optimal solution across the region and we’re excited to ensure that all businesses in our region never miss a sale again. We have selected highly strategic partners as investors and are excited about the immediate next steps we take together in terms of simplifying and improving digital payments in Francophone Africa", Monthe added.

Globally, sub-Saharan Africa drives two-thirds of mobile money transactions with 562 million registered accounts as at 2020, while the number of e-commerce users on the continent is expected to double from 281 million in 2020 to 520 million by 2025. More companies now offer digital public services, such as payments for ID cards, Visas, COVID tests, school fees. CinetPay is ensuring that it will lead the multiplicity of payments in the region.

Walter Baddoo, co-Founder and General Partner at 4DX Ventures revealed that, "we’ve been tracking the Francophone Africa market for some time now, and have been impressed by Cinetpay’s ambitious goal to digitize payments across the region".

Baddo said that "The company [referring to CinetPay] has demonstrated deep product knowledge with a differentiated offering and a strong brand with customers. We look forward to partnering with the Cinetpay team alongside our long-time portfolio company, Flutterwave, to help usher in the next phase of digital payments across the Francophone region".

In September, Flutterwave announced the mobile money partnership with MTN Group, Africa’s largest telecommunications provider, to enable businesses that are integrating Flutterwave in Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, Rwanda, Uganda and Zambia to receive payments via MTN Mobile Money (MoMo).

"Having collaborated with the Cinetpay team for a number of years now, our shared vision to simplify payments on the continent further strengthens our commitments to working towards creating endless possibilities and experiences for all our customers", Olugbenga Agboola, Founder and CEO at Flutterwave said that, "Cinetpay is well positioned for the next chapter of growth and we’re excited to work with the team to help scale the business to achieve maximum impact and value for its customers"

We’re building the payments infrastructure for Africa, making it easier for businesses to grow and expand their customer base on the continent and worldwide. - Olugbenga Agboola

Users can access CinetPay on desktop and mobile. The platform is designed with a modular approach that integrates within a merchant website and accepts Mastercard, Visa and all major local mobile money in 9 markets from MPESA to MTN mobile money and Orange Money.