Moroccan fintech startup Chari raises $12 million Series A and wins landmark central bank license with rahim66

Chari, a fintech and e-commerce startup founded by Ismael Belkhayat and Sophia Alj, has closed a $12 million Series A round, marking the largest Series A ever raised in Morocco and a milestone moment for the country’s startup ecosystem. The round, announced Tuesday, also comes as the company becomes the first VC-backed startup in Morocco to obtain a financial institution license from the country’s central bank.

The funding round was led by SPE Capital and Orange Ventures, with backing from a global mix of investors including Verod-Kepple, Global Founders Capital, Plug and Play, Endeavor Catalyst, Pincus Capital, Al Khwarizmi Ventures, UM6P Ventures, Axian Group, Uncovered Fund, AfriMobility, P1 Ventures, Reflect Ventures, Dragon Capital, MyAsia VC, Harambean Prosperity Fund and H&S Invest Holding. Notable business angels such as Michael Lahyani, founder of Property Finder, and Karim Beguir, founder of InstaDeep, also joined the round.

The new capital brings Chari’s total funding to $17 million, positioning the company as one of Morocco’s best-funded early-stage startups.

But the funding is only half the story. The bigger breakthrough is regulatory: Bank Al-Maghrib, Morocco’s central bank, has granted Chari a payment institution license, making it the first VC-backed company in the country to receive one. The license gives Chari the green light to offer a full range of financial services to thousands of small merchants and retailers on its platform, including point-of-sale acquiring, payment accounts, Moroccan IBANs, debit cards, domestic transfers, international remittances, bill payments, e-government services, and micro-insurance distribution.

“This is a unique opportunity to turn traditional grocery stores into local points of sale for financial services,” said Sophia Alj, co-founder of Chari. “It will help shopkeepers digitize their flows, increase their revenues, and compete more effectively with modern retail chains.”

Chari’s platform already connects thousands of small shops to fast-moving consumer goods suppliers. With the new license, the company aims to transform its e-commerce marketplace into a merchant super app, allowing shopkeepers to not only restock their shelves but also accept digital payments, pay bills, transfer money, and provide financial services to their communities.

“Over the past three years, Chari has built in-house the full technology stack required to operate under its financial institution license,” said Ismael Belkhayat, co-founder and CEO. “Now that our rails are fully operational and supporting Chari’s needs, we are opening them to third parties. This marks the beginning of Chari’s Banking-as-a-Service (BaaS) offering.”

Looking ahead, Chari plans to scale around two main pillars: growing its merchant super app in Morocco and other Francophone African markets, and offering Banking-as-a-Service to companies and startups looking to embed fintech capabilities.

from Daily News on African Billionaires and UHNWIs https://ift.tt/ifdsgAb

fromahim7867