Nigeria-based Africa’s fast-growing payment infrastructure company Zone raised USR 8.5 million in oversubscribed seed funding. The round took place on March 18, 2024. Reputable VC firms such as Flourish Ventures and TLcom Capital led the company’s financing. Meanwhile, Digital Currency Group (DCG), VKAV (Verod-Kepple Africa Ventures), Endeavor Catalyst and Alter Global also supported the company.
Purpose of financing for Zone
With the latest proceeds, Zone seeks to expand the coverage of its network domestically further. It also has plans to connect more banks and financial services companies. Furthermore, it intends to carry out a thorough pilot study in 2025 to evaluate the Company’s cross-border capabilities. Ensuring the company is ready to expand throughout Africa in order to facilitate both domestic and international payments is a top priority. This will help the company realize its goal of becoming a worldwide payment network.
Zone will be able to expand into new areas thanks to Flourish Ventures’ global vision, substantial Africa fintech expertise, and networks of industry influencers. TLcom Capital leverages its established contacts with key decision-makers in Nigeria to provide a solid basis for Zone within its home market while also providing crucial local credibility and understanding of the African IT landscape.
What the company’s official has to add
Obi Emetarom, CEO and co-founder of Zone, said, “The participation of high-quality investors despite the funding drought and the fact that we had more interested investors than we needed, is a sign of trust in the Zone brand and investor excitement about the opportunity to redefine payment infrastructure in Africa. As we step into this new phase at Zone, we are re-energized and our commitment to transforming Africa’s payment infrastructure is renewed. Our new investors and existing shareholders including CCA, Lateral Capital, Constant Ventures and V8 bring more than just financial backing as their global scope and deep expertise make them invaluable partners for us. With their support, we are poised to accelerate our mission to connect every monetary store of value and enable real-time payments within and across geographical borders. Zone is committed to staying at the forefront of technological advancement and industry evolution in financial services.”
What the investors have to comment
Ameya Upadhyay, Partner at Flourish Ventures, said, “For the first time in Africa, Zone’s technology enables direct communication between participants in the payment ecosystem. We believe this is a fundamental leap that will allow customers to experience a completely new standard of reliability, speed, and cost efficiency at ATMs, POS machines, and online. We are excited by the potential for Zone’s technology to be replicated across borders to advance payment innovation globally. The fact that Zone is led by Obi and Wale, who are veterans of the banking industry, reinforces our conviction that Zone can fulfil our shared goal of moving the entire sector forward.”
Besides, Ido Sum, Partner at TLcom Capital, said, “We are thrilled to partner with Obi Emetarom and Wale Onawunmi, co-founders of Zone, on their journey to build a category-defining fintech company that is using advanced blockchain technology to solve a critical payments system challenge. The Company’s innovative infrastructure has the potential to deliver tremendous value to financial institutions, enhancing the overall payment experience for end-users and driving down costs for hundreds of millions of consumers and businesses that rely on digital payments in Africa every day. We have no doubt that Zone, led by Obi and Wale, is on its way to transforming into a global company over time, and TLcom is excited to bring its complementary experience, networks and expertise to support the Company in fulfilling its impressive scale ambitions.”
About the company
Zone is a controlled blockchain network that facilitates digital currency acceptance and payments. Its Layer-1 Blockchain network links previously unconnected financial institutions into an all-inclusive payment ecosystem, digitizing Fiat payments and facilitating the shift to digital currencies.
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