Yellow Card has raised $33 million to help its business grow across Africa. This funding round was led by Blockchain Capital, with participation from Polychain Capital, Third Prime Ventures, Castle Island Ventures, Block, Inc., Galaxy Ventures, Blockchain Coinvestors, Hutt Capital, and Winklevoss Capital. With this, Yellow Card has now raised a total of $88 million, adding to earlier rounds in 2021 and 2023.
How Yellow Card Will Use the Money
The company plans to use the new funds in expanding its operations, focusing on growth across the continent, and enhancing its technological products, particularly its API and widget offerings. which help businesses enter African markets and make international payments easy using stablecoins like USDC.
These tools are important for companies like Coinbase and Block, which already work with Yellow Card in Africa.
Teaming Up with Block and Coinbase
In 2023, the fintech partnered with Block, the US fintech company behind the Cash App and Square, facilitating cross-border payments between 16 African countries, including Nigeria, Ghana, and South Africa.
in January 2024, Yellow Card also partnered with Coinbase to make it easier for people in 20 African countries to access USDC and other digital currencies. This lets users pay in their local currencies using bank transfers or mobile money, making transactions smoother and easier.
Growing While Others Struggle
The increasing adoption of stablecoins in Africa, driven by their practical utility for international payments and cross-border trade, has allowed Yellow Card to flourish despite challenges in the global crypto market.
Founded in Nigeria in 2019, Yellow Card operates in 20 countries and has processed more than $3 billion in transactions. While Yellow Card continues to grow, other companies like Paxful have closed down, and Mara has had to rebrand due to financial issues. This comes at a time countries like Nigeria and South Africa are working on new rules to regulate the crypto industry.
