Sudanese fintech Bloom has raised $6.5 million, which is the largest seed round ever raised in Sudan.
Investors that participated include Visa, Y Combinator, Founders Capital, Goodwater Capital, VentureSouq, and individual investors like Arash Ferdowsi, Nicolas Kopp, footballers Blaise Matuidi and Kieran Gibbs, and early employees of Revolut and Tide, and others.
This investment from Visa was one of the cool things Bloom got from participating in Visa’s Fintech Fast Track Program. It is the first Sudanese startup to be admitted to the programme.
Bloom’s founders say this seed round will finance its expansion plan across the Anglo-East African region entailing countries like Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, and Zambia where competitors like Fingo, Koa, and Finclusion operate. They are working to be in at least 1 market before the end of the year.
Partnership with Visa
Bloom offers digital banking services. It provides zero-fee accounts for users to save in dollars and spend in Sudanese pounds. It also issues local and dollar cards that enable remittances from several countries.
Up until this deal, Mastercard provided these cards for Bloom. Now the digital bank has made Visa its card provider. This stems from the partnership Visa made with Bloom alongside its financial investments. In this partnership, Visa will give Bloom marketing assistance and product support and enable faster product launches. On the other hand, the investment and partnership will speed up the adoption of Visa cards in Sudan and East Africa.
