Business Post Contributor
By Ashemiriogwa Emmanuel
Nigerian financial-technology company, Sparkle, has raised the sum of $3.1 million in a seed funding round involving mainly Nigerian investors.
Among these investors were Leadway Assurance, Trium Networks, and many Nigerian High Net-worth Individuals (HNIs) who participated to make the seed rounds oversubscribed.
The company, owned by the former Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the defunct Diamond Bank, Mr Uzoma Dozie, secured the funding after initially raising a total of $2 million in previous pre-seed rounds of friends and family.
The latest funding package has now raised the total funding to $5.1 million, which would enable the company to expand the platform’s talent team across engineering, financial risk, and marketing departments.
It said it would also invest in automated back-end processes and digital infrastructure to improve the overall customer experience.
Speaking on the investment, Mr Dozie said, “Everyone understands the true need for digital-first platforms such as Sparkle. This is to improve access to financial services and, importantly, to provide financial inclusion to more people for business, personal means, or both.
“Overall, as a group of investors and business builders, we are a bullish Nigerian in Nigeria and all in one app about the opportunities the country offers regarding building global networks and communities.
“New investors in the Sparkle tribe, we welcome and are pleased to rely on the expertise and insights of their sector to build long-term partnerships while scaling up.”
The former banker said that the mission of the tech-oriented company is to help Nigerians meet their business and personal needs.
“It’s about helping you reach your potential by democratizing access to your solutions. Nigeria has more and more young people living, working, and playing across physical boundaries.
“We are building with them in mind. Whether we are building services for individuals or businesses, we are committed to creating a connected tribe of sparklers,” the Sparkle CEO added.
Established in 2019, Sparkle is a digital platform that provides financial and business support to Nigerians in the country and around the world and was launched after receiving a banking license by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
The service is available via its Android and iOS mobile application and it offers financial services including flexible payments, savings, and analytics to provide flexibility and control over one’s finances and lifestyle.
