Mauritius-based fintech 4G Capital has announced the completion of its second round of fundraising. The investment was secured by a $2 million debt facility from Ceniarth, bringing the total raised to $4 million.
4G Capital will use the investment for onward lending to its growing customer base of informal micro, small and medium-sized enterprises across Kenya and Uganda.
Since its inception in 2013, 4G Capital has grown exponentially, lending over 750,000 loans valued at $90 million. Over the last 12 months, revenue has increased by 97% as 4G Capital supported over 60,000 MSMEs. By the end of this year, 4G Capital will have lent $43.6 million, surpassing all expectations.
Repayment rates remain above national averages, at over 94% (without refinancing). “The rapid expansion of mobile and technology-based financial services in emerging markets has the potential to provide critical capital to individuals previously excluded from the financial system”, said Diane Isenberg, Founder of Ceniarth. “With this expansion comes great responsibility to ensure that customers understand and benefit from these services and are not exploited by providers focused more on growth than client impact. We are proud to support 4G Capital as a best-in-class financial lender that listens to the needs of the communities that it serves.”
Wayne Hennessy-Barrett, CEO and Founder of 4G Capital, said: “We are incredibly honored to welcome Ceniarth as our latest investor. Together, we share a fierce passion for improving conditions for the underserved and neglected businesses of the African economy by providing financial services that sustainably unlock potential and help communities. 4G Capital has surpassed all key performance targets for 2019, and Ceniarth’s investment will help us meet the demands of our growing customer base and continue our positive impact into the future – a fantastic way to end a great year.”
4G Capital understands that small businesses benefit from a level of continuous support when handling credit. Therefore, the company offers customers a curriculum of enterprise and financial literacy training blended with appropriately sized working capital loans. This approach has seen 4G Capital’s customers increase their revenue by an average of 82% year on year.
Over the course of 2020, 4G Capital will continue to grow its network of physical branches across Kenya and Uganda, with an additional 24 branches across Kenya and 34 across Uganda, bringing the network total to 150 branches.
Since 2013, 4G Capital has supported East African micro-enterprises by providing financial literacy and enterprise training combined with right-sized working capital credit to help small businesses grow sustainably. 4G Capital customers receive bespoke business training programs and credit guidance via mobile apps and in-person via our nationwide network of branches.
4G Capital’s unique machine learning technology delivers high fidelity insight into customer risk and affordability. As a result, 4G Capital consistently achieves high collections rates without collateral or refinancing its clients, only lending to viable businesses on terms that are right for them. 4G Capital is on target to positively impact over 1 million people by 2020.
Serving customers in Kenya, Uganda, and Ghana, and having received multiple industry awards, 4G Capital is now scaling across the continent and expanding its suite of products and services.
Ceniarth is the single-family office of Diane Isenberg that together with an affiliated, private charitable foundation, funds market-based solutions benefitting underserved, primarily rural, communities.
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