• News 9 March 2021

IFC invests R225m in SA fintech Adumo to expand digital payment solutions in Africa

Johannesburg, South Africa, March 9, 2021 – South African fintech group Adumo today announced R225 million ($15 million) in new funding from IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, and the IFC Financial Institutions Growth Fund to expand access to electronic payment solutions, especially for underserved small and medium-sized businesses.

IFC’s investments will support Adumo to make digital payments systems more affordable and accessible to smaller businesses in Africa, many of which currently rely on cash transactions. Adumo, South Africa’s largest independent payment provider with a presence in 14 African countries, owns merchant acquirers Sureswipe and Ikhokha and payment processor Innervation Pan African Payments.

“The pandemic and associated impact on consumers and businesses are transforming the face of the payments industry with interest in cashless payment services at an all-time high. The funds we have raised from our new equity partners will help us roll out new payment innovations and purpose-based lending services to support consumers and retailers as they navigate an uncertain 2021,” said Paul Kent, CEO at Adumo.

The investment by IFC and the IFC Financial Institutions Growth Fund, a fund managed by IFC’s Asset Management Company, consists of $15 million in preferred shares to fund the growth of the company.

“Through this investment in Adumo, we will be helping small businesses tap into the digital economy, which is more important now than ever before. Digital payments are often the first step for a small business to build a credit history, which opens the way to access further financial services such as financing to grow the business,” said Sérgio Pimenta, IFC’s Vice President for the Middle East and Africa.

Supporting small businesses to access finance and financial services affordably and sustainably is a priority for IFC because of their potential to not only grow the economy but also create jobs. IFC combines investments and advisory services to help financial intermediaries reach more small businesses in South Africa and other emerging markets.

In South Africa, micro, small and medium-sized enterprises employ over 50 percent of the work force and contribute around 34 percent of GDP, but many don’t have access to key services that would help their business grow. Digital and mobile payment solutions can help businesses increase footfall and improve customer retention by supporting the transition away from cash-based transactions.

Adumo, previously known as Crossfin Transactional Solutions, processes more than $5 billion in transactions annually through more than 30,000 active clients and across 50,000 active card machines.

In 2018, Apis Growth Fund I, a private equity fund managed by UK based financial services asset manager, Apis Partners LLP, invested growth capital in Adumo. Matteo Stefanel, Managing Partner at Apis Partners LLP, said, “Our investment in Adumo was a testament to the organisation’s potential to grow into a market leader through a combination of organic and inorganic growth. We are delighted to see Adumo’s continued success be recognised by a leading global institution like the IFC.”

Udayan Goyal, Managing Partner at Apis Partners LLP, added: “Our thesis around building the leading diversified non-bank payments company in South Africa has been validated by this investment by the IFC. We are confident that the IFC investment will be an important contribution to further accelerate the company’s growth in order to consolidate its already strong market position.”

ENDS

 

Press Contacts

Paul Kent, CEO, Adumo – Tel: 011 581 1216. Email: paul@adumo.com

Andre Fourie, PR Consultant, FURY. Tel: 079 505 5422. Email: andre@furystrategic.com

 

About Adumo

Adumo is South Africa’s largest independent payments processor, offering a range of smart payment solutions to large multi-national and independent retailers as well as entrepreneurs and informal traders. Adumo’s group companies, which include Sureswipe, iKhokha, Humble, Innervation Pan African Payment Solutions and Innervation Rewards, process more than R66-billion in transactions annually across more than 30 000 active clients and 50 000 card machines in 14 African countries. For more information, please visit www.adumo.com

 

About IFC

IFC—a member of the World Bank Group—is the largest global development institution focused on the private sector in emerging markets. We work in more than 100 countries, using our capital, expertise, and influence to create markets and opportunities in developing countries. In the fiscal year 2020, we invested $22 billion in private companies and financial institutions in developing countries, leveraging the power of the private sector to end extreme poverty and boost shared prosperity. For more information, visit www.ifc.org.

 

About IFC Asset Management Company

IFC Asset Management Company (AMC), a division of IFC, mobilizes and manages capital to invest in businesses in developing and frontier markets. Created in 2009, AMC provides leading institutional investors with unique access to IFC’s emerging markets investment pipeline and investment expertise, while providing positive development impact in the countries in which it invests. Investors in AMC managed funds include sovereign wealth funds, pension funds, and development-finance institutions. It has raised over$10 billion across 13 investment funds covering equity, debt, and fund-of-funds products. For more information, visit www.ifcamc.org

 

About the IFC Financial Institutions Growth Fund

The $505 million IFC Financial Institutions Growth Fund is a follow-on fund to the IFC Capitalization Fund and makes equity and equity-like investments in financial institutions across global emerging markets.

 

About Apis Partners LLP

Apis Partners LLP is an ESGI-native global private equity asset manager that supports growth stage financial services and financial infrastructure businesses by providing them with catalytic growth equity capital. Apis Partners LLP, through its team of c. 30 professionals with deep industry expertise, manages total committed capital from investors (including drawn and invested capital) of c. US$ 1bn.

Apis Partners LLP is highly conscious of the developmental impact that the provision of growth capital for financial services and financial infrastructure businesses in growth markets can achieve, and as such, financial inclusion is a core tenet of Apis Partners LLP’s approach and investment mandate.

Apis Partners LLP became a signatory to the United Nations backed Principles for Responsible Investment (UNPRI) upon inception of the firm in 2014.

For more information, please visit www.apis.pe