Senegalese mobile money platform Wave has secured $137 million in debt financing, led by Rand Merchant Bank, with support from British International Investment (BII), Finnfund, and Norfund, according to TechCabal. The funding will enable the company to expand its operations, allowing it to continue serving underserved communities across Africa. What does Wave do? Founded in 2018 by Drew Durbin and Lincoln Quirk, Wave serves over 20 million monthly active users through a network of more than 150,000 agents and a team of 3,000 employees across eight markets in West Africa.
Kuda, a digital bank based in Nigeria and the U.K., has confirmed via email to media that it has laid off less than 5% of its 450-strong workforce, equivalent to about 23 people. There have been other startups, especially those that have raised vast sums of venture capital within the last year or two, that have laid off hundreds of staff; for instance, Swvl laid off 400 people; Wave, approximately 300; 54gene, 95; and Vezeeta, 50. The layoffs come a year after Kuda, which provides zero to minimal fees on cards, account maintenance and transfers,
