Brass, a Nigerian startup that provides tailored financial solutions to SMEs, has been acquired by a Paystack-led consortium with participation from PiggyVest, Ventures Platform, P1 Ventures, and angel investors Oo Nwoye and Olumide Soyombo.
Launched in July 2020 by Sola Akindolu and Emmanuel Okeke, Brass equips SMEs with a full-stack, commercial-grade banking service across various business classes, enabling them to gain greater clarity and control over their money operations and the power to scale their enterprises. Some of its services include the following:
- Payments and Collections: The platform facilitates easy payments and collections, allowing businesses to send and receive money efficiently. This includes the ability to handle payments to multiple vendors or employees and collect payments from clients and customers.
- Expense Management: Brass provides tools for managing business expenses, including corporate cards that help businesses keep track of their spending and manage expenses more effectively.
- Accounting Tools: Integration with accounting software and tools is another feature offered by Brass. This helps businesses streamline their financial operations and maintain accurate financial records.
- Credit Services: Recognizing the funding challenges faced by SMEs, Brass offers access to credit facilities, enabling businesses to secure loans and financing to support their growth and operations.
According to Sola Akindolu, the CEO in a blog post, “Brass will continue to build and support its customers and grow with a new leadership team, as the founding leadership team will leave to pursue other opportunities.” This means that Sola Akindolu and Emmanuel Okeke will be leaving the company. He did not say who would be taking over.
Amandine Lobelle, Paystack COO, mentioned that Brass and Paystack have had a long working relationship since Brass’ founding. She added that “each member of the investment group brings several years’ worth of experience financing and building reliable financial service products, and together with a new infusion of capital, we’re excited for Brass’ next stage of growth.”
