Kuda, formerly known as Kudimoney, has raised $1.6 million in pre-seed funding. The funding was led by investor Haresh Aswani along with Ragnar Meitern and other angel investors. Based on the investment, Aswani will take a position on Kuda’s board.
The digital-only retail bank plans to use its seed funds to go from beta to live launch in Nigeria by fourth-quarter 2019. The startup will also build out the tech of its banking platform, including support for its developer team located in Lagos and Cape Town.
Kuda recently launched the beta version of its online mobile finance platform and also received its its baking license from the Central Bank of Nigeria.
According to Kuda bank founder Babs Ogundeyi in a discussion with Techcrunch, “Kuda is the first digital-only bank in Nigeria with a standalone license. We’re not a mobile wallet or simply a mobile app piggybacking on an existing bank.”
“We have built our own full-stack banking software from scratch. We can also take deposits and connect directly to the switch,” Ogundeyi added, referring to the Nigeria’s Central Switch — a SWIFT-like system that facilitates bank communication and settlements.
Kuda offers checking accounts with no monthly-fees, a free debit card, and plans to offer consumer savings and P2P payments options on its platform in coming months.
Kuda’s plans to generate revenues focus largely around leveraging its bank balances. “We plan to match different liability classes to the different asset classes that we create. That’s how we make money, that’s how we get efficiency in terms of income,” Ogundeyi said.
