EXCLUSIVE: Midddleman is raising a six-figure pre-seed to dominate global trade

Midddleman, the Nigerian startup simplifying payments and logistics for African businesses trading with China, is raising a six-figure pre-seed round. Cofounder Omolara Sanni confirmed to Condia that the raise is still ongoing and expected to be completed by Q4 2025.

“We hope to use the funds to hire for some key roles, launch campaigns for user acquisition, and build new products for our users,” Sanni said. The startup, which launched an escrow product in 2023, quickly realised the African market wasn’t quite ready and pivoted to payments.

In May 2024, the company began to address a challenge the cofounders were well acquainted with from their experience running different e-commerce businesses: paying suppliers in China. Today, Midddleman helps African vendors fund Chinese Yuan (CNY) wallets and pay their suppliers.

Since making the pivot, Midddleman has processed over ₦1 billion in total transaction value. It has also picked up wins at grant competitions hosted by First Bank, First City Monument Bank (HERccelerate by Hub One and SheVentures), and Wetech,  which helped validate its new direction.

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But the bigger play is far from just payments. “Middleman simplifies global trade for African businesses that trade with China,” Sanni said. “Today, that looks like payments. But in the near future, we are solving much more—because there’s still so much more pain points along that value chain we want to solve.”

*This is a developing story