Wave raises $137 million to expand mobile money services across Africa

Wave, one of Africa’s most valuable startups, has raised $137 million debt round to boost its working capital and expand across new and existing markets. The funding will scale its mobile money operations and broaden financial access for underserved communities across the continent.

Rand Merchant Bank (RMD) led the funding round, including participation from a consortium of global development finance institutions, including British International Investment (BII), Finnfund, and Norfund. 

Founded in 2018 by Drew Durbin and Lincoln Quirk, Wave has experienced rapid growth as it now operates in eight markets across West Africa. The fintech startup has helped millions of underserved individuals into the formal financial system through its affordability and accessibility approach. Before Wave, players like Orange, Free, and Expresso Telecom ruled the market—with high fees to match. Wave stood out by going mobile-first and slashing transaction costs.

“I’m thrilled about this funding, it means we can help even more people by delivering the best possible product at the lowest possible price,” said Drew Durbin, CEO of Wave.

Today, Wave serves over 20 million monthly active users through more than 150,000 agents and a team of 3,000 employees across the continent. In a recent stride, Wave received authorisation for operation in Cameroon through a partnership with Commercial Bank Cameroon(CBC).

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Wave offers free deposits and withdrawals with a fixed transaction fee of just 1% for money transfers between individuals. Additional fees for bill payments from are passed from users on to businesses.

In 2023 and 2024, Wave was the only African company listed on Y Combinator’s top 50 earning startups list. Wave is the first francophone Africa’s unicorn in September 2021, reaching a valuation of $1.7 billion after closing a $200 million Series A funding round which was the largest Series A round ever recorded for an African startup. It has since raised over $300 million in total funding.