In April 2024, Tanzanian-founded fintech NALA closed a $40 million Series A funding round—one of the largest ever raised by an African cross-border payments company. To the casual observer, it might have looked like another successful capital event in Africa’s maturing tech ecosystem.
But NALA’s story is not just about capital raised—it’s about a deep, unmet need being met with precision.
It is also a signal: that the remittance economy—long seen as a lifeline—is finally being rebuilt for the people it was meant to serve.
In a world where sending money to Africa often remains slow, costly, and opaque, NALA is rewriting the rules.
Name: NALA
Headquarters: London, United Kingdom
Engineering Base: Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
Founded: 2017
Core Market: African remittances (UK, EU, US to Africa)
Core Services: International money transfers, B2B payments infrastructure
Funding Raised: $40 million (Series A, 2024)
Notable Backers: Acrew Capital, DST Global, Amplo
Origin with a Purpose
NALA was founded by Benjamin Fernandes, a former Stanford fellow and ex-Google employee, with a clear purpose: to simplify the way money moves to and across Africa. The company began as a local payments app but quickly evolved when Fernandes recognized the magnitude of one underserved opportunity: remittances from the African diaspora.
For decades, Africans living abroad have struggled with remittance services that were too expensive, too slow, and too unreliable. In many cases, sending $100 home could cost $8 or more—representing a silent tax on families that need every shilling.
Rather than replicate legacy models, NALA built a solution from the user outward: mobile-first, transparent, low-cost, and designed specifically for African destinations.
Reimagining Remittances Through Technology
NALA’s platform is deceptively simple: send money to African countries, quickly and affordably. But what lies beneath is a growing cross-border financial infrastructure. The company built its own FX routing layer, partnered with African banks and mobile money providers, and removed the need for intermediaries.
For users, that means two key advantages: reliability and transparency. Transactions settle faster, exchange rates are locked before payment, and fees are disclosed upfront.
This attention to detail in both infrastructure and experience is what distinguishes NALA from competitors. It’s not just a fintech app—it’s a remittance engine.
Why the $40 Million Matters
NALA’s Series A round does more than extend its runway. It reflects a growing confidence—among global investors—in African-led infrastructure businesses. The funding will be used to expand corridors beyond East Africa, strengthen partnerships with regulators and banks, and grow NALA’s B2B product suite for enterprises and NGOs making cross-border transfers at scale.
Crucially, it also signals a broader shift in the remittance economy: from physical to digital, from transactional to strategic.
As Western Union and MoneyGram continue to rely on agent-heavy models, NALA is offering something leaner, faster, and far more modern.
Building Trust in a Low-Trust Industry
In many African countries, remittances are more than a financial service—they are a form of responsibility. They pay school fees, support parents, fund building projects, and enable entrepreneurship. Yet for decades, senders have had to rely on fragmented systems that often fail when needed most.
NALA is positioning itself not just as a cheaper alternative, but as a more trustworthy one. Its focus on user experience, clear pricing, and customer support reflects a broader philosophy: that trust is built by design, not by default.
That trust has translated into traction. NALA now serves users in over 10 sending countries, with coverage in major African markets, including Kenya, Tanzania, Ghana, Uganda, and Rwanda.
Infrastructure, Not Just an App
Beyond its consumer platform, NALA is investing in financial infrastructure—particularly for institutions and businesses. Its recently launched “NALA for Business” product allows organizations to send funds to African markets with full API access, cost control, and compliance support.
In doing so, NALA is transitioning from a fintech app to a cross-border financial backbone. It is moving from retail remittances to B2B money movement—an area where efficiency, transparency, and scale matter even more.
This evolution aligns with broader trends in African fintech: where startups aren’t just digitizing transactions, they are rebuilding the pipes underneath them.
What the Industry Can Learn
NALA’s story offers key lessons for founders, operators, and policymakers navigating financial innovation in Africa:
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Solve for pain, not prestige. Remittance pain points are real and deep. NALA addressed them before chasing scale.
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Infrastructure is the advantage. Proprietary FX routing, compliance layers, and payout integrations provide leverage.
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Trust wins retention. Low fees attract users; transparency and reliability keep them.
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Start with people. Expand to platforms. NALA began with individuals. It is now building for institutions.
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Global relevance begins with local insight. NALA’s strength lies in its African roots—its product grew from the continent’s lived realities.
The Road Ahead
NALA’s ambitions go beyond being the cheapest way to send money to Africa. Its long-term roadmap includes deeper financial services, multi-currency wallets, diaspora investment tools, and broader B2B infrastructure for intra-African trade.
Its challenge will be scale—growing into new corridors while maintaining the operational excellence that built its reputation. But with a clear mission, a growing user base, and strong investor support, the company is well-positioned.
What NALA is proving is simple: remittances are not charity—they are economic infrastructure. And that infrastructure can be designed to serve Africans better, faster, and more fairly
About the Author
Aurel Kinimbaga is a cross-border finance specialist and contributor focused on fintech innovation, diaspora payments, and the economic role of remittances in emerging markets. He writes regularly on how digital platforms are reshaping the flow of capital and trust across African borders.