Traditional finance in Africa isn’t serving everyone
2.5B+ people across the world lack access to formal credit and face financial exclusion, which has created a $360B credit gap in Africa alone. Traditional lenders cannot scale SME lending due to poor customer experiences, poor credit capabilities and overall limited reach. There is now a massive opportunity for developments in mobile technology to improve financial inclusion in Africa.
Asaak was founded with the mission to unlock financial services for all Africans. Our first product is credit, strategically starting with the idea that we can meet a person’s immediate need for capital today and help them save and invest tomorrow.
Asaak has created a completely digital end-to-end lending marketplace, enabling Africans to access financial services and investors to invest directly into Asaak’s loans.
Within our first target market of mobility, customers typically come to Asaak for a loan to buy a motorcycle to support their work as a ride hailing driver. By working with Asaak, drivers no longer have to lease motorcycles thereby doubling their earning potential. Each loan is backed by the motorcycle itself, a highly liquid asset with slow depreciation.
Our approach is built for scale: B2B2C. We look to partner directly with gig economy companies like Uber, Jumia, SafeBoda, etc. to finance their drivers’ purchases of motorcycles. In exchange we receive data about applicants such as their customer ratings, trips completed, and money earned which helps us understand their creditworthiness.
Achievements
$30M+ raised to date from top funds: Social Capital, 500 Startups, others
6K+ loans disbursed with 95% payment collection rate
76% gross margin in 2021
15.7X revenue growth in the last 11 months
Lending at scale: $20M debt facility in place
Exclusive partnership with Africa’s largest bank, Standard Bank Group