Visa, a global card payment processor, has announced strategic investments in four African startups that have graduated from its Africa Fintech Accelerator program: WorkPay and OkHi in Kenya, Orda in Nigeria, and Oze in Ghana.
The Africa Fintech Accelerator was started in 2023 in accordance with Visa’s commitment to invest $1 billion USD in financial inclusion in Africa by 2027. To date, it has accelerated 45 startups in two cohorts, with 15 partnerships currently in operation.
Only four of the 23 startups that participated in the first program last year were chosen by Visa for strategic investment, despite receiving mentorship, technology credits, and chances to network with possible investors during demo day.
WorkPay, a Kenyan HR and payroll management company; OkHi, an AI-powered address verification service from Kenya; Orda, a Nigerian restaurant technology startup; and Oze, a Ghanaian business banking platform, were the chosen startups.
“Our goal has been to uplift the brightest that are building solutions to unlock money movement, empower merchants and SMBs, and support financial inclusion in the continent,” the company said in a LinkedIn post about the programme.
Visa has launched its third cohort of its accelerator program, with 22 startups taking part, and the second cohort’s startups will pitch to Visa and other investors at a demo day next month.
