Nomba, a Nigerian payment service provider, has raised a $30 million Pre-Series B funding round. The equity round—which Nomba says was oversubscribed—was led by San Francisco-based Base10 partners, with participation from Helios Digital Ventures, Shopify, Partech, and Khosla Ventures.
With a simple origin story as an AI chatbot that helped people process online payments on social apps, Nomba (formerly known as Kudi) has evolved into a fully licensed payment service provider in Nigeria. The company underwent a rebrand last year and currently supports more than 300,000 businesses with a wide range of banking, management, and payment solutions. The company also claims to process $1 billion in monthly transactions.
With this new funding, Nomba says it will provide bespoke payment solutions to several businesses. “Nomba will deliver payment solutions that have been designed for the specific services that businesses provide, enabling them to plug gaps in their payment processes, operate more efficiently, and deliver excellent customer experiences,” an excerpt from the company’s statement reads.
Most businesses in Nigeria use a point-of-sale device to accept payments, and Nomba wants to change this “generic” means of collecting payments. For example, Nomba says it will help restaurants access menus, manage inventory, receive payments, and perform other business functions all from the same hardware.
Another use case for Nomba’s approach would be for transport and logistics companies; the company says that will enable them to directly connect their transactions to payments. Founded by Adeyinka Adewale and Pelumi Aboluwarin, Nomba will also deliver a range of business tools, including invoicing and order management solutions starting from Nigeria, a move it says will improve efficiency and reduce the cost of operations for businesses across the continent.
“We see payment as a business model, not just a product, and we want to make it easier for businesses to take advantage of all that is possible in their payment processes to support their continued growth and success. We have a long list of products we have been working on and the funds we have raised as well as the investors that have backed us gives us a lot of confidence about what can be achieved with more effective payment solutions in the hands of business owners,” Yinka Adewale, the CEO and co-founder of Nomba, said in a statement.
Luci Fonseca, Partner at Base10 said, “Nomba’s track record of innovation and capital efficiency makes it one of the most exciting startups in Africa. We are thrilled to be supporting them to deliver their game-changing solutions to power growth and continued success for businesses in Nigeria and beyond.”
