Bankly, a prominent Nigerian fintech company and licensed microfinance bank, has announced its full acquisition by C-One Ventures, an investment firm dedicated to technology and financing in Nigeria. This strategic deal will see Bankly’s comprehensive services, licenses, and highly skilled talent seamlessly integrated with the complementary offerings of other entities within the C-One Ventures portfolio. As part of this acquisition, C-One Ventures will assimilate Bankly’s operational licenses, its talent pool, and its extensive partner platform. A significant reorganisation and restructuring process is currently underway to ensure Bankly’s smooth transition and integration into the C-One Ventures family. Tomilola Majekodunmi, Bankly’s CEO, will continue to provide support during this transition in an advisory capacity.

C-One Ventures boasts an impressive existing portfolio of technology-enabled financial services. This includes Fulcrum, a platform designed to unlock working capital for Nigerian suppliers through payable finance and other supply chain financing (SCF) products; GetPayed, an all-in-one application for managing payments and banking solutions; and gomoney, a modern digital bank offering an app-based alternative to traditional banking. The inclusion of Bankly further solidifies C-One Ventures’ commitment to advancing technology-enabled financial services for both businesses and individuals across Nigeria.

Founded in 2018 by Tomilola Adejana and Fredrick Adams, Bankly initially launched as a digital savings and peer-to-peer transfer platform. It innovatively allowed users to fund their wallets using tokens purchased on Bankly vouchers nationwide, employing a unique “recharge to save” model reminiscent of mobile airtime top-ups. Over its six-year journey, Bankly has made substantial progress in addressing Nigeria's financial inclusion gap, particularly for unbanked and underbanked populations. The company has achieved this by providing secure, digital alternatives to informal savings methods such as “ajo” or “esusu.” Its innovative Group Savings feature, in particular, offers a transparent and accountable approach to communal saving, combining accessibility with a user-friendly interface to help individuals save for critical needs.

Through its robust platform and extensive agent network, Bankly provides a range of essential services including savings, payments, and access to credit, effectively integrating more individuals into the formal financial system. A significant milestone in its journey was the launch of its Microfinance Bank, which broadened its capacity to deliver accessible financial solutions. With an impressive network of over 50,000 agents nationwide and a customer base exceeding 2 million individuals and businesses, Bankly has been instrumental in driving financial inclusion and economic empowerment for millions, especially in low-income and rural communities. The fintech startup also successfully raised $2 million in a seed funding round in March 2024, led by co-investors such as African payments unicorn Flutterwave and Vault, the holding company behind VANSO.

Commenting on the acquisition, Tomilola Majekodunmi, CEO and co-founder of Bankly, expressed immense pride in the company's achievements. She stated, “Bankly was founded with a mission to drive financial inclusion to the last mile, and we have certainly made significant progress on that front. Like any business, we’ve faced our share of challenges, but I’m confident that this acquisition will keep the Bankly vision alive and further advance our mission of empowering more Nigerians through inclusive financial solutions.”