Nexta, an Egyptian startup that plans to launch its banking app in the coming months, has secured a $5 million investment from eFinance Group. Nexta announced a $2 million pre-seed round in March.
Nexta obtained a provisional license from the Central Bank of Egypt last year and will look to fulfill additional requirements before getting the final approval for the agent banking license it needs to launch its services in the country. The Nexta app will have a partner bank to handle settlements and act as an intermediary between itself and the CBE.
Nexta is trying to disrupt the Egyptian financial services scene with its app and card. The Nexta card will allow users to aggregate their existing payment cards, allowing more effortless money transfer, and other features.
Next-generation banking is something we are trying to build. The company plans to make revenue from interchange fees, according to the co- founder and CEO. The soft launch will include budgeting and tracking spending. We will add more features to solve the Egyptians' problems.
Consumer spending is high in Egypt. One of the region's most cash-reliant markets means there's an immense opportunity for fintechs to bring consumers spending online. A $20 million seed round was announced last week for Nexta and Telda, both of which are not powered by a mobile wallet or digital channels from a legacy bank.
Egyptian consumer money app Telda raises $20M from GFC, Sequoia Capital and Block
Unlike Telda, which allowed signups from its yet-to-be-launched apps (it didn't bode well with its over 30,000 users after waiting nearly a year to use the app), Nexta has limited its waitlist to signups from its website. Hisham wouldn't say how many people are on the company's waiting list.
Both consumer-facing fintech apps compete with cash according to Hisham. Thanks to Telda, I believe that the competition is healthy and that they made consumers aware of it. The CEO said that the Egyptian market needs more than one Telda and Nexta player.
The investment in Nexta is in line with Egypt's digital transformation plan as well as the Group's plan to maximize its assets and investments. Nexta is one of the promising companies financed by the group. In order to improve the current and future direction of fintech in Egypt, the Group took part in the establishment of Nclude, an investment fund.
Nexta is glad to have e-finance on board as the demand for financial services in Egypt increases, according to Hisham. He believes there is a huge opportunity for us to offer a differentiated and outstanding experience to different users.
Nexta will benefit from the investment as it prepares for its launch, hires talent and invests in its technology.
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