Senegalese startup, ProXalys, has raised $500,000 in a funding round to expand its market reach and enhance its main product, ProBoutik, an invoice-lending management tool. The funding round is split into three segments, with 216 Capital contributing the majority at $300,000. Haskè Ventures and Digital Africa also participated via the FUZE program.
The newly acquired funds will be used to bolster its data and AI teams in Tunisia and Senegal and establish a robust presence in Dakar and Tunis.
216 Capital views its collaboration with ProXalys as a shared commitment to the idea that digital transformation and financial inclusion are vital for encouraging sustainable economic growth in the region over the long term.
Founded by Thierno Sakho in 2021, ProXalys is focused on managing and capturing customer finances and digitizing informal retailers. It provides an online marketplace for agricultural products that gives merchants deferred and assured payment options.
ProXalys, which aids informal distributors in order handling, administrative management, and supply chain logistics, also provides a procurement service for everyday goods. With over 100 customers, it is exploring ways to enhance the agricultural sector’s value chain.
The startup emphasizes the importance of digitization in the informal sector and aims to help these traders digitalize their distribution and management processes for better competition.
ProXalys is making a significant contribution to the vast landscape of over 60 million micro-businesses that comprise Africa’s informal trade sector. In Senegal alone, the informal economy is estimated to account for 37.7% of the GDP, which equates to roughly $40 billion when measured at purchasing power parity (PPP) levels.
In 2022, ProXalys generated $150,000 in pre-seed funding from Haskè Ventures, a Dakar-based startup venture builder, to broaden its reach within Senegal and the West African region, bolster its technology, and develop its physical infrastructure.
In the same year, ProXalys participated in the CATAPULT: Inclusion Africa program in October, where selected fintech startups are given mentorship, coaching, and peer-to-peer learning opportunities.
In addition, the Senegalese company was among the 36 African startups shortlisted for the 2022 Meltwater Entrepreneurial School of Technology (MEST) Africa Challenge. The winning startup stands to receive $50,000 in equity funding.
