African BNPL Giant TradeDepot Secures Staggering $110M to Dominate Continent

TradeDepot, a leading Nigerian B2B e-commerce and embedded finance platform, has successfully closed a Series B investment round, securing $110 million in a combination of equity and debt. This significant funding injection is earmarked to fuel the expansion of its crucial buy-now-pay-later (BNPL) service across the African continent, thereby enhancing the distribution of consumer goods and fostering economic prosperity in the region's vital informal sector.

The equity portion of the funding round was spearheaded by the International Finance Corporation (IFC), a distinguished member of the World Bank Group. Other notable participants in the equity financing included Novastar, Sahel Capital, CDC Group, Endeavor Catalyst, along with existing investors Partech and MSA Capital. The debt financing component was led by Arcadia Funds, a specialized lender in peer-to-peer, marketplace lending, and insurance-linked products. This latest funding follows an $10 million round the company received approximately eighteen months prior, which was co-led by Partech Africa and the IFC. As part of this strategic transaction, Wale Ayeni, the IFC’s Head of Africa Venture Capital Investment, and Brian Odhiambo, West Africa Director for Novastar Ventures, will be joining TradeDepot’s board of directors.

Founded in 2016 by Michael Ukpong, Onyekachi Izukanne, and Ruke Awaritefe, TradeDepot operates a robust B2B platform designed to bridge the gap between small businesses, kiosks, and independent retailers with global consumer brand wholesalers. These wholesalers supply essential food, beverages, and personal care items. Through its proprietary ShopTopUp platform, TradeDepot offers an extensive array of consumer products to its network of SME shops, facilitating distribution via its own comprehensive network of warehouses and dedicated fleets of drivers.

The platform’s growth has been remarkable; CEO Onyekachi Izukanne stated that the company had expanded its merchant base from over 40,000 last year to more than 100,000 active merchants currently. TradeDepot's operational footprint spans 12 cities across Nigeria, Ghana, and South Africa. It effectively leverages its advanced data analytics, proprietary technology, and efficient logistics operations to seamlessly connect retailers with suppliers.

A cornerstone of TradeDepot’s offering is its embedded financial services, particularly the credit lines that empower retailers to acquire inventory and repay in installments as they sell the products to their own customers. This model significantly boosts sales, enhances profit margins, and delivers other value-added services to all stakeholders. Izukanne highlighted the impact of this access, noting, "Merchants are able to double or triple what they normally buy just because of this access. We think that these embedded financial services will be a key part of this narrative: supply chain on the one hand, and everything related to financial services to make these businesses work on the other."

The company remains deeply committed to integrating technology into the supply chain and meticulously onboarding retailers. Beyond BNPL and credit, TradeDepot now provides a full suite of products to its onboarded customers, including digital wallets and diverse financial services. This strategic approach aims to accelerate the distribution of services to a greater number of stores, thus improving consumer goods brand penetration and generating economic uplift in one of Africa's most critical sectors.

Onyekachi Izukanne reiterated the company’s vision, stating, "We remain super focused on making digital commerce and financing both accessible and affordable to neighbourhood retailers across key cities in Africa. We are delighted to be joined by an elite group of new investors and to have IFC’s Wale Ayeni and Brian Odhambo of Novastar join our board of directors, to support us on this journey to drive growth and prosperity across the continent." TradeDepot has successfully cultivated a strong network of leading consumer goods brands and small to medium-sized businesses (SMBs) throughout Africa, with its financing model and cutting-edge logistics technologies leading to a reported 200 percent increase in transaction volumes for its retail store owners.

Makhtar Diop, IFC’s Managing Director, emphasized the broader societal impact, adding, "The informal sector is a large and critical part of Africa’s economy, accounting for around 80 percent of jobs in the region. We are excited to work with TradeDepot to leverage technology to help small businesses across the continent, particularly the many retailers led by women, access the resources they need to grow and scale." This partnership underscores TradeDepot’s pivotal role in fostering inclusive economic growth and empowering underserved segments of the African economy.