Cameroonian fintech startup Ejara has raised $8 million in Series A funding to “democratize” access to financial products in French-speaking African countries.
Founded two years ago, Ejara provides a blockchain wallet service to its users. Ejara users can purchase, sell, trade and keep crypto assets using the Ejara wallet. Ejara co-founders Nelly Chatue-Diop and Baptiste Andrieux believe their services differ from most crypto platforms targeting the same region.
Ejara allows users to opt for non-custodial wallets, meaning they have full control of private keys. According to Ejara, this option emphasizes respect for customers’ privacy and ownership of their assets. In the wake of FTX’s collapse, this system prevents the company from seeing a significant decline in users like other wallets.
Ejara also provides other services to its customer base, who have limited access to financial products compared to the wealthy. Its users can engage in cross-border transactions using stablecoins through the platform. Ejara also recently introduced tokenized government bonds that users can purchase using the app.
With Ejara, users do not have to create a bank account to access savings products. They only have to register to the app and make a minimum deposit of 1,000 CFA franc ($1.5). Users can earn up to ten percent of interest from their deposits within two years.
English venture capitalist Anthemis and crypto hedge fund Dragonfly Capital co-led this funding round. Other investors participating in the capital round include Moonstake and Circle Venture. These investors are adamant that Ejara is “well-positioned” to achieve significant growth like prominent Web2 financial apps, such as the Chinese Alipay.
Ejara plans to expand beyond the crypto realm, aiming to be a one-stop shop for financial products on the continent. It also plans to expand to the French-speaking African diaspora in Europe.
In addition to Cameroon, Ejara currently caters to users in countries including Senegal, Mali, Ivory Coast and Burkina Faso. It has amassed more than 70,000 users since its launch. According to Chatue-Diop, her company has posted ten times revenue growth since October despite the current crypto winter.
