Fund for transformative digital payments launched in Africa by DFS Lab and Stellar

The DFS Lab Stellar Africa Fund I, which will support high-potential builders and teams in Africa looking to transform the landscape of digital payments and beyond by building on the Stellar network, has been announced by DFS Lab.

Early-stage investor DFS Lab invests in founders who are generating opportunities for everyone while concentrating on Africa’s biggest economic engines.

The Stellar Development Foundation’s investment has enabled it to establish its new fund. The Stellar Development Foundation (SDF), a non-profit organization that aids in the growth and development of Stellar, is a decentralized, quick, scalable, and especially sustainable network for financial goods and services.

With the open-source Stellar network, which is optimized for payments and asset issuance, DFS Lab’s years of supporting Africa’s top digital commerce founders come together in the fund. Portfolio founders chosen by the fund for investment will have access to DFS Lab’s staff and community in addition to mentors from the Stellar Development Foundation and Stellar ecosystem businesses.

It will build on earlier blockchain bootcamp collaborations between DFS Lab and the Stellar Development Foundation, which assisted startups and developers in Africa who were constructing on the open-source Stellar network.

“‘We’ve seen developers build solutions on Stellar that address local needs, ranging from wallet apps and remittance services to digital identity solutions. We’ve worked with growing teams across Africa, and we’re excited to be expanding our relationship with DFS Lab to support more African founders,” said Daniel Casanas, head of investments at the Stellar Development Foundation.

“At DFS Lab, we have always taken a pragmatic approach when it comes to decentralised finance in Africa. It is hard to deny the potential that decentralised solutions can offer in a continent where finance is oftentimes bogged down by inefficiency, opacity, and lack of interoperability,” said Joseph Benson, partner at DFS Lab.

“We’ve now seen a rush of talent and capital enter into this space, helping to refine the potential use cases for technologies like blockchain and crypto in Africa. Undoubtedly, some approaches will falter as hype gives way to reality, but those who break through and find traction may find themselves building foundational platforms that can underpin the future of digital transactions on the continent. We believe that’s an opportunity well worth exploring.”

The new fund will support pre-seed and seed teams creating for Africa, according to Stephen Deng, a partner at DFS Lab.

“We’re open to various use cases but will be especially interested in those solving for fiat-crypto ramps and those building cross-border payments for the continent. We’ll fund both teams that are familiar with the Stellar platform alongside those who want to integrate Stellar into their product roadmaps for the first time. We plan on initial investments of up to US $100,000, with further follow-on investments possible as teams grow,” he said.