SA VC HAVAÍC reveals it’s funded Kenyan startup Tanda

Cape Town based venture capital (VC) company HAVAÍC revealed yesterday that it has concluded an investment in Nairobi based Dukapay Ltd (trading as Tanda).

The investment was made at the end of last year, ahead of a syndicated seed round of investment.

The startup has a platform that allows micro-retailers to offer a wide range of digital services such as airtime, prepaid electricity, bill payments and other services to their customers, via a mobile phone platform.

Tanda also makes available cash in and cash out services at the micro retailers signed up as Tanda agents.

HAVAÍC — which first disclosed that it had made the investment in a recent performance review (opens as a PDF) — did not disclose how much it had invested in the startup.

HAVAÍC invested in Kenyan startup Tanda at the end of last year, ahead of a syndicated seed round of investment

Developed by Nairobi-based founders Geoffrey Mulei and Alex Wilson, Tanda aims to provide access to digital financial services and affordable agency banking for the underbanked population in Kenya and the rest of East Africa.

HAVAÍC said in a statement yesterday that both Mulei and Wilson have been involved in distribution networks, digital financial services and duka (micro-retailer) networks,

They have been joined by an ex-Safaricom, M-Pesa and Kopo Kopo distribution senior manager to grow the reach of the network.

Off the back of an angel funded pilot, Tanda has brought much needed financial services to over 350,000 Kenyan’s through 7000 micro-retailers.

HAVAÍC partner Rob Heath commented yesterday in the same statement that: “Geoff, Alex and the rest of the senior management really understand the market they are attacking. They are not sitting in some ivory tower making broad assumptions.

“They took me around the streets of Kayole, Nairobi and showed me Tanda in action – working on a variety of smartphones.

“Like HAVAIC’s other investments in the region, Tanda is positively affecting many thousands of peoples’ lives by supporting small businesses, and it has offered an excellent investment opportunity. As an investor and board member, this is the type of business that makes me get up in the morning.”

Read more: We’re betting on investing R250m in startups over next 3 to 5 years – HAVAÍC head

Featured image: Tanda co-founder Geoffrey Mulei (Facebook)