Kenyan fintech startup Paylend raises $2m seed funding

Kenyan fintech startup Paylend has raised US$2 million in seed funding to expand operations at home and launch in Tanzania, Zambia and Nigeria.

Founded in 2019 by Bendon Murgor and Eliutherius Juma, Paylend is digitising the manual, black book recording of data traditionally used by MSMEs. So far it has digitised over 10,000 SMEs, providing an array of services including access to credit and crowdfunding tools.

The US$2 million seed investment comes from Next Chymia Consulting HK Limited, an Asian company that provides blockchain applications, consultancy services and training to global entities. Paylend will use the capital to expand its operations in the Kenyan market and open new markets in Tanzania, Zambia and Nigeria as part of its three-year growth plan.

“I believe in impact-driven solutions. For a very long time, MSMEs have experienced stunted growth due to lack of efficient business tools or lack of funds. With Paylend, we are able to turn this around by helping these businesses access affordable credit quicker thus allowing them to have liquidity thus ensuring business continuity. Additionally, we form alliances with strategic partners with similar goals to present business tools that ease operations of these MSMEs,” said Juma, the startup’s chief executive officer (CEO).

“The formal banking landscape in Sub-Saharan Africa supports around 20 per cent of Africa’s bankable population, with the majority of people excluded from access to finance and wealth creation, this is a massive opportunity for fintechs like Paylend.”

Kenji Sasaki, CEO of Next Chymia Consulting HK Limited, said he was “delighted” to support Paylend.

“Our vision is to ensure that no one is left behind in Africa when it comes to access to technology that can potentially facilitate wealth creation. We believe in the power of technology in transforming communities, and Paylend’s model is doing that at a micro level, which is where a lot of work is needed if we are to drive digitisation. We have seen first-hand the potential that the informal sector in Africa has in solving key society issues and we are excited to be able to support and create impact,” he said.