In a year marked by investor withdrawals and mounting operational pressures, Jumia Technologies AG may have found an unlikely backer to steady the ship: Axian Telecom, Africa’s sixth-largest telecoms group. The Madagascar-based telco has quietly acquired an 8% stake in the struggling e-commerce platform, according to a beneficial ownership report filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on May 31.
The disclosure reveals that Axian now holds 19.7 million ordinary shares in Jumia, whose American Depositary Shares (ADSs) trade on the New York Stock Exchange. The investment is held indirectly through Axian Telecom Holding and Management Limited (ATHML), with shared beneficial ownership attributed to Hassanein Hiridjee, Axian’s CEO and ultimate controlling shareholder.
The purchase appears to have been financed through a mix of Axian’s cash reserves and a $150 million term credit facility signed in October 2023, which includes a $100 million uncommitted accordion feature.
Axian’s entry into Jumia comes at a time of significant vulnerability for the latter. Once heralded as Africa’s answer to Amazon, Jumia has seen its market value plummet from a peak of over $3 billion in 2021 to just over $400 million today. The firm’s stock is currently trading around $3.30 per ADS — down more than 90% from its high.
Axian Telecom CEO Hassan Jaber framed the move as a long-term strategic bet on Africa’s digital economy. “We believe Jumia’s achievements in digital retail infrastructure and fintech through JumiaPay, as well as its logistics strengths, place it in a position to promote financial and economic inclusion for the communities it serves,” Jaber said in a statement. “This unique position makes Jumia a very attractive investment for Axian Telecom, and one which is aligned with our core values.”
A Vote of Confidence — or a Rescue Bet?
Jumia’s new shareholder arrives just weeks after its most prominent institutional backer, Edinburgh-based Baillie Gifford, disclosed it had exited its entire position in the company. The firm, once Jumia’s largest outside investor, began scaling back its stake in 2022 and had held 7.4% of the company as recently as late 2024. By May 2025, it was gone entirely.
That departure hint at the growing skepticism among global investors over the viability of Africa’s e-commerce model. Despite showing some operational improvements — orders rose 21% year-on-year in Q1 2025 — Jumia’s revenues declined 26% to $36.3 million, and operating losses more than doubled. Currency devaluations in key markets like Nigeria and Egypt, combined with intensifying price competition from new entrants like Chinese e-commerce giant Temu, have eroded margins further.
Cash reserves are also dwindling. The company burned through $23 million last quarter, leaving it with roughly $111 million in liquidity — enough to sustain operations for just over a year at the current rate. Analysts now speculate that Jumia will either need to raise capital at a painful valuation or impose deeper cost cuts to prolong its runway.
In that context, Axian’s investment appears both timely and tactical. While no formal strategic partnership has been announced, Axian’s pan-African presence could offer synergies. Its telecom and fintech operations — unified under the Yas and Mixx by Yas brands — span nine countries, including Tanzania, Togo, and Madagascar. These markets overlap with Jumia’s footprint, potentially opening doors to infrastructure-sharing, cross-platform integration, or even joint product development.
Founded in 2004, Axian Telecom has evolved into a fast-growing disruptor in Africa’s telecommunications landscape. Since 2015, it has expanded aggressively through acquisitions and infrastructure investment, now serving more than 40 million customers. It operates mobile and fixed networks and provides mobile financial services across East and West Africa, as well as the Indian Ocean region.
Axian’s consolidation of its mobile businesses under a single brand — Yas — aims to create a unified customer experience, while Mixx by Yas serves as its fintech arm in markets like Tanzania and Senegal. These branding moves align with a broader strategy to build a pan-African digital platform capable of challenging more established incumbents.
While Axian has primarily focused on telco and digital finance, the Jumia investment suggests a widening of its ambitions into adjacent verticals such as e-commerce and logistics.
Jumia’s Uncertain Path Forward
For Jumia, Axian’s stake may offer more than just capital — it could signal renewed confidence at a time when few others are willing to bet on the platform’s revival. Yet, any optimism remains cautious. The firm has yet to demonstrate a path to profitability, and its recent cost-cutting measures have so far failed to stabilize its financial footing.
Meanwhile, the exit of Baillie Gifford — an emblem of long-term, patient capital — raises questions about how much time Jumia has left to prove its model. The firm’s departure, part of a wider portfolio recalibration, also reflects a broader market shift away from growth-at-all-costs investing in emerging markets.
For now, Axian’s move offers a lifeline — and perhaps a strategic foothold. But whether it marks the start of a turnaround for Jumia or merely extends the timeline of a difficult reckoning remains to be seen. In a landscape defined by macroeconomic volatility, infrastructure challenges, and deep-pocketed competition, Africa’s e-commerce pioneer still faces formidable headwinds.