For these companies — names like Chipper Cash, LemFi, Flutterwave, and TapTap Send — a 5% tax on remittances out of the U.S. would have fundamentally altered their business models.
As more startups layer financial services onto distribution networks, the message is clear: surviving Africa’s B2B e-commerce crunch may hinge less on moving goods, and more on financing them.
Temu’s expansion comes less than a year after Jumia Technologies AG, often dubbed the “Amazon of Africa,” shut down operations in South Africa and Tunisia.
As more startups layer financial services onto distribution networks, the message is clear: surviving Africa’s B2B e-commerce crunch may hinge less on moving goods, and more on financing them.
