Optasia, which made history in November 2025 as the largest fintech IPO on the JSE, uses proprietary AI to provide credit scoring and micro-lending to unbanked populations.
The raise, which includes Visa and Google, defies a broader African tech funding downturn and will fuel the $1bn-plus-valued company’s continental expansion.
The Cape Town-based firm will manage Zafiri, a new blended finance vehicle from the IFC and AfDB aiming to plug the 'missing middle' equity gap for decentralised energy companies.
The South African edtech startup recently won a restraint of trade case against a senior exec who claimed his new 'Co-Founder' title at a competitor was just an 'honorarium'.
This investment is the latest in a series of operations carried out by the public fund, which is actively deploying capital to support Ivorian tech companies.
While other regional African fintechs struggle with profitability, Central Africa's mobile money ecosystem processed 3.5 billion transactions in 2023. The backbone? Nearly half a million street-level agents converting cash into digital currency.
Optasia, which made history in November 2025 as the largest fintech IPO on the JSE, uses proprietary AI to provide credit scoring and micro-lending to unbanked populations.