With the increasing availability of internet connectivity and smartphones in Africa, entrepreneurs like Ahmed Wadi, an Egyptian software developer and entrepreneur, are using technology to provide financial services to underserved communities and increase financial inclusion on the continent.
Wadi, a computer engineering major at the University of Stuttgart, has worked on a variety of projects for Microsoft and Daimler. While working as a software developer for Alpine Electronics in Germany, he contributed to the development of a tool called “Universal-User-Manager,” which allows users to enter information from any source.
The Egyptian software developer, who began his career as a developer for the National Bank of Kuwait a few years after implementing one of the first IP camera-based object tracking software packages, is one of many young entrepreneurs on the African continent who are using technology to disrupt the financial services industry.
In 2016, Wadi joined forces with another Egyptian software developer, Adham Badr, to co-found Money Fellows, a mobile-based collaborative group lending and savings platform that digitizes the traditional, informal offline ROSCA (Rotating Savings and Credit Association) model, allowing users to meet their financial and saving needs.
The platform has grown significantly since its inception more than six years ago. Its app, which is available on the Google Play Store and the Apple App Store, has over 4 million downloads and over 250,000 active users.
Under the leadership of the Egyptian entrepreneur, the startup raised $31 million from institutional investors in its recently completed Series-B funding round nearly two months ago as it moves to expand its operations across Africa and Asia.
The $31 million in funding, the startup’s fourth round of funding since its inception, brings its total funding since its inception in 2016 to $37 million, making it one of Egypt’s most funded startups.
According to Wadi, the capital injection will allow the platform to expand its product offerings and diversify its services to both B2C and B2B markets, as well as expand geographically to Africa and Asia.
