Money Fellows, a Top African Fintech, Raises $13 Million to Help More People Access Financial Services
Money Fellows, a popular financial technology (fintech) company in Africa, has raised $13 million in new funding. This money came from big investment groups, including Partech Africa and CommerzVentures. With this new funding, the total amount of money the company has received since it started is now over $60 million.
The latest round of funding was mainly led by two investment companies Al Mada Ventures (AMV) and DPI Venture Capital, through a fund called Nclude Fund.
What Will the Money Be Used For?
Money Fellows says it will use the new funds to make its digital platform better. This is very important now because the platform has more than 8.5 million users, and it is working with over 350 local and regional partners.
The company wants to expand into more countries and help change the way people save, borrow, and invest money. Instead of doing these things the old-fashioned way, Money Fellows wants to digitalise them so they are easier, safer, and faster.
The company’s goal is to give more people access to helpful financial services—especially those who normally don’t have access to banks or loans. This is called financial inclusion, and it helps improve lives and grow economies.
“Money Fellows is an important part of Africa’s finance world. We use both the power of community savings and the latest technology to help people manage their money better,” said Ahmed Wadi, the company’s founder and CEO.
“This new investment proves that people believe in what we are doing. We want to help even more people especially in places where financial services are hard to reach, save money, get loans, and invest in a way that is easy and affordable,” he added.
What Is Money Fellows?
Money Fellows was started in 2017 by Ahmed Wadi. The company focuses on modernising a traditional savings method called ROSCAs, which stands for Rotating Savings and Credit Associations.
How ROSCAs Work
In a ROSCA, a group of people agree to put money into a shared pot every month. Each month, one person in the group gets all the money. This continues until everyone has had a turn.
For example:
- 10 people put in $1,000 each month.
- Every month, one of them gets $10,000.
- This goes on for 10 months until everyone has received their payout.
This system works best with friends or family because it’s based on trust. But it also has problems—like it being hard to grow or to get more money when needed.
Money Fellows solved this problem by creating a digital version of this system. Now, users are not limited to their own small groups. The app checks each user’s credit score, so it’s safer to join with people you don’t personally know.
According to Wadi, this savings model is very popular in over 90 developing countries. In different places, it has different names:
- Esusu or Ajo in Nigeria
- Kameti or Chit Fund in India
- Gameya in Egypt
Wadi said he first got the idea when he lived in Germany. He couldn’t get financial help there because he didn’t have a credit history. So, he thought of using the ROSCA system as an alternative.
What Investors Are Saying
Many investors are excited about what Money Fellows is doing.
Omar Laalej, managing director at AMV, said ROSCAs are old systems that have been around for centuries. He praised Money Fellows for turning it into a modern business that is helping many families in Egypt.
Mohamed Aladdin, from DPI Venture Capital, said the future of banking in Africa depends on new ideas like Money Fellows. He believes the company can make a big difference in Egypt and beyond.
Cyril Collon, from Partech, said he is proud to support Money Fellows. He said the app uses local savings traditions along with technology to help more people.
Patrick Meisberger, from CommerzVentures, said he is excited about how Money Fellows is changing people’s lives by making it easier and safer to save money.
What’s Next for Money Fellows?
With the new money, the company plans to expand to new countries, especially in North Africa. One of their main targets is Morocco, where more people are starting to use digital banking and saving tools.
Upcoming events like the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations and the 2030 FIFA World Cup (both being hosted in Africa) are expected to help even more people become interested in digital financial services.
