Anchor, the financial infrastructure platform enabling businesses to build and launch banking and payment products via APIs, today celebrates its fourth anniversary. Since launching to solve the fragmented process of building financial software in Africa, the platform has grown to process over $3 billion for more than 1,000 businesses across 17 markets.
Four years ago, building financial products across the continent required piecing together multiple banks, payment providers, and complex internal systems. Integrations took months, compliance was complicated, and engineering teams spent critical time on underlying infrastructure rather than customer experience. Anchor was founded on a simple premise: enabling any business to build and launch financial products by simply connecting to an API.
“When we started Anchor, we wanted to take care of the difficult infrastructure underneath financial products so companies could focus on their customers. Four years later, that is still the goal. As embedded finance becomes relevant to virtually every industry across Africa, our ambition is to remain behind the scenes, quietly enabling the financial experiences that millions of people will use every day.” said Segun Adeyemi, CEO of Anchor in a statement reflecting on the milestone.
Over the last four years, Anchor has expanded from a targeted infrastructure tool into a comprehensive platform that businesses use to open accounts, build wallets, issue cards, collect payments, and move money locally and globally.
Key platform milestones to date include:
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- $3B+ total transaction volume processed
- 1,000+ businesses building and operating on the platform
- 17 markets served across Africa
- 4 licenses secured across different jurisdictions
- 10+ global banking and payment partnerships worldwide
While these operational metrics mark significant growth, the company highlights the practical impact on software development as the core measure of success: companies launching months faster without building financial infrastructure from scratch, engineering teams spending time improving core products instead of maintaining ledgers, and businesses scaling into new markets without rebuilding their financial stacks.
The four-year milestone also marks a period of continuous learning and iteration. Overcoming complex integrations, failed experiments, and regulatory challenges over the last four years directly informed platform updates and matured Anchor’s underlying technology stack.
To mark the anniversary, Anchor has released a short documentary covering the early days of the company, the technical problems it set out to solve, the difficult moments, and the team and partners behind the platform.
Watch the Anchor 4-Year Mini-Documentary
Looking ahead, Anchor remains focused on expanding its financial infrastructure footprint across the continent, working alongside its network of customers, partners, investors, and regulators.
About Anchor Anchor is an infrastructure platform that enables businesses to launch financial products via simple APIs. From account creation and digital wallets to card issuance and cross-border payments, Anchor powers the underlying financial operations for businesses across Africa.
Last updated: September 1, 2026
