MoneyFellows, an Egyptian fintech platform has secured $4 million in Series A investment in a move to help millions of new users reach their financial goals in Egypt and across Africa.
MoneyFellows, a financial enabler that digitizes money circles allows users to more effectively manage and fulfill their financial needs., raised the funding from Partech and Sawari Ventures in a move that will support its expansion into other countries in the continent with hands-on global expertise.
According to founder and CEO of MoneyFellows Ahmed Wadi, “Being backed by Partech and Sawari Ventures – two top investment firms, helps us reap global, as well as local know-how, best practices and support. Partech’s support from their African fund will help us expand into other countries in the continent with hands-on global expertise. While Sawari Ventures have been a cornerstone of Moneyfellows’ journey for the past three years; from day one they have been with us, and bring to the table a cachet of knowledge, alongside a vast network of relationships with key corporates and financial institutions, making them our optimal local partner.”
Currently, MoneyFellows has more than 150,000 active users that are verified by a user assessment algorithm. The investment will be used to expand the company’s operations nationwide in Egypt as well as further across Africa. The company also plans to launch a slew of new products in the coming months.
“We are proud to have MoneyFellows join Partech’s investment portfolio to support the company to scale and expand. The team is fantastic and the product sophistication is unique, making money circles attractive for millennials and their grandparents,” General Partner at Partech Cyril Collon said. “The impact of MoneyFellows on financial inclusion is already massive in Egypt, as the solution offers convenient secured lending and saving schemes to consumers by digitizing a traditional savings model.”
Recently, Partech closed its latest Seed Fund, Partech Entrepreneur III, at $100M, investing in post-COVID trends in health, work, commerce, finance, mobility and computing.
Partech says despite the lockdown, the Fund is actively investing in Europe, US and Asia to support seed-stage startups in the reboot of personal and professional after the pandemic.
The Partech Entrepreneur III Fund, with its seed funds exceeding $300M in total and topping 160 investments in 22 countries, invests across all stages of seed, from pre-seed rounds of a few hundred thousand dollars to pre-Series A rounds of several $M, from chips & deep tech to marketplaces.
Gebeya, an edtech and online software outsourcing marketplace closed a $2 million seed round investment from Partech earlier this year.
“MoneyFellows is one of the most promising fintech companies to come out of the region; their fusion of technology and existing ROSCA culture solves both the problem of financial inclusion and helps people to better plan their personal finances,” Managing Partner at Sawari Ventures Hany Al Sonbaty said. “In enabling people to save beyond their immediate circles, they are not only promoting a culture of saving, but also facilitating a gateway for the further introduction of financial services to larger numbers of people as they become more financially aware. We are thrilled to be investing in the company and joining them on this exciting journey.”
Through managing money circles (gam’eyas), MoneyFellows allows users to sign up for slots in trusted and convenient money circles, ensuring payouts are done on-time and securely deposited. Users can use MoneyFellows to achieve their personal, financial goals, such as paying their children’s school tuition on time or buying certain products and assets. MoneyFellows has raised over $6 million in investment over the past three years.