Fintech firm Wari has joined the US‑Africa Business Center (USABC) initiated by the US Chamber Of Commerce. Wari’s CEO and founder, Kabirou Mbodje, will also sit on the Center’s Board of Directors.
“Wari is extremely proud to join the US-Africa Business Center. The move demonstrates the growing international reach of our business activities and the economic vitality on the African continent. Africa is now shaping the economy of the future, especially in the digital environment,” said Mr Mbodje.
The US-Africa Business Center Board of Directors includes Aliko Dangote (Nigeria), Maria Abrantes (Angola), Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede (Nigeria), Kenny Odogwu (Nigeria) and Jim Ovia (Nigeria). With four representative offices in Dakar, Abidjan, Lagos and Accra, it is increasingly active in Africa. It has three main goals: promote intra-regional trade in Africa, help US companies gain a foothold and grow in Africa, and assist African companies in extending their international reach and integration in the North American market.
“We are proud to have Wari and its founder, Kabirou Mbodje, join the US-Africa Business Center. Wari’s business model offers an innovative solution to meet much of the need for structure in African economies; it echoes our own drive to support the digital transformation in the continent’s economies,” said Scott Eisner, President, US-Africa Business Center and Senior VP, US Chamber of Commerce.
Incorporated in 2008, Wari offers a unique digital platform that plays a central role in the uberization of African economies and financial inclusion in the region. Wari’s solutions provide a cost-effective platform to meet daily needs for as many people as possible, covering bill payments, airtime purchases, insurance, pensions, scholarships and salaries. Wari has 212 million users and handles one million transactions a day (representing more than $6 billion annually) via 500,000 agents and 152 partner banks in more than 60 countries.
Wari was established in Dakar, Senegal, in 2008. The company aggregates versatile, digital solutions that span a wide array of everyday financial and non-financial transactions. Examples include payments, airtime purchases, pensions, scholarships, salaries and money transfers. Wari handles one million transactions a day, representing more than US $6 billion a year, with annual growth of 15%. With 500,000 agents and 152 partner banks, Wari has 212 million users and has created 45,000 direct jobs, including 18,000 in Senegal.
Wari is a majorplayer in West Africa and a catalyst for financial inclusion in the region. It is currently expanding its platform in the international market, with a presence in 60 countries, driven by the belief that digital technology in Africa can spur growth and deliver global solutions. In 2017, Wari announced an agreement to buy Senegal’s second-largest mobile phone company, TIGO, and is in the process of acquiring SIAB bank in Togo.
The US-Africa Business Center (U.S.-AfBC) advocates for increased trade between US and Africa. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce created the U.S.-AfBC to lead the U.S. business community in a new period of unprecedented engagement with Africa’s regional economic communities, the established African private sector, as well as small and medium-size enterprises (SMEs).
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