LemFi, a Canada-based fintech that allows Africans in the diaspora to send money back home and vice versa, has raised $33 million in a Series A funding round.
The round was led by Left Lane Capital and featured other participants including Y Combinator, Zrosk, Global Founders Capital, and Olive Tree.
The new infusion brings the startup’s total funding to $46 million since its inception.
Announcing the milestone, LemFi expressed its excitement noting that it was a testament to its impact in facilitating money transfers by Africans.
“After three years of rewarding work done, we have reached another milestone,” LemFi stated.
“With 500,000+ people believing in us and our mission to enable international payments for everyone, we can’t wait for the future.”
LemFi’s three-year journey
Founded in 2020, LemFi- initially known as Lemonade Finance- has been determined to ensure seamless money transfer for Africans residing abroad- a solution the company claims other money transfer systems had failed to provide.
The company was founded by Ridwan Olalere, a software developer and former Manager of Uber Nigeria, and Rian Cochran who has formerly served as the Senior Director of Finance at Opera Software AS.
LemFi’s goal was to establish itself as the go-to solution for Africans seeking to remit money to their native countries or those seeking to send money to their relatives abroad- mostly students and migrant workers.
So far, LemFi’s platform allows users in Canada, the United States, and the United Kingdom to send money to not only Nigeria where its operations started but to 10 destinations including Uganda, Rwanda, Kenya, Ghana, Tanzania, and Ghana.
Additionally, the company has gone from just facilitating international payments for migrants to now offering transfer services for everyone.
In July, LemFi secured the International Money Transfer Operator (IMTO) license from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN)- which gave it the green light to work directly with banks, and thus making money transfers to Nigeria smoother and more convenient.
Global Expansion Plans
LemFi’s future, according to the co-founders, is poised to be bigger and brighter. With the newly secured funds, the fintech startup has now set its sights on global expansion targeting to set up operations in more countries in Europe andope, the Middle East, and Asia.
The expansion, Cochran says, will be informed by data on markets with significant numbers of immigrant communities.
In addition, LemFi will look to introduce more financial services to customers.