LittleFish, a fintech startup based in South Africa that helps banks better serve SMEs, has raised an undisclosed amount of funding from Flourish Ventures and TLcom Capital to support its growth.
LittleFish, co-founded in 2021 by Brandon Roberts and Miod Davith Kahwa, is a comprehensive digital platform that helps banks better serve small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Africa.
The startup offers a variety of services, including digital payment processing, credit facilitation, and streamlining financial operations through partnerships with financial institutions. Banks can maintain their SME clientele while providing a nimbler and customer-focused solution thanks to the partnership model.
After raising an undisclosed sum of money in a round headed by TLcom Capital—which is making its first investment into South Africa—and including Flourish Ventures, the startup is now preparing to expand.
After first meeting LittleFish in late 2022, TLcom Capital, which announced the final close of its US $154 million Tide Africa II early-stage fund in April, stated in a blog post that it was impressed by three aspects of the team.
“Firstly, Brandon’s courage and ambition to leave a corporate job in enterprise software to start a high-growth technology venture early in his career. Secondly, the team has a deep understanding of the fintech industry. Their vision to empower banks to counter the rise of fintechs by more efficiently acquiring and better servicing small and medium-sized companies was clear from day one,” the firm said.
“Finally, Littlefish’s partnership with Visa is significant because it gives the company a major competitive edge by enabling it to launch with solid tie-ins with Visa’s partner banks. Visa has clearly also seen the massive value in the company’s mission and product.”
