MoneyBadger, a South African fintech startup focused on enabling everyday Bitcoin and crypto payments, has successfully closed its pre-seed funding round, raising $400,000 (approximately R7 million). This milestone reflects growing investor confidence in the company’s mission to make cryptocurrency a practical and scalable payment method across Africa.

The funding round was led by P1 Ventures, a venture capital firm with deep expertise in African fintech, and supported by three angel investors with strong backgrounds in Bitcoin and the broader crypto ecosystem.

“MoneyBadger was born out of a real-world need,” explains CEO Carel van Wyk. “When Pick n Pay approached us to integrate Bitcoin payments into their point-of-sale systems, we saw an opportunity to leverage the Bitcoin Lightning Network. The result was a prototype that exceeded expectations—faster, more reliable, and cheaper than traditional tap-to-pay credit card systems.”

Van Wyk, who previously co-founded Luno, one of Africa’s leading crypto exchanges, teamed up with Carl Kritzinger, founder of FireWorks, to build a high-caliber team. The leadership includes:

Since its inception, MoneyBadger has rolled out crypto payment capabilities to over 1,600 retail outlets across South Africa, including all Pick n Pay hypermarkets, supermarkets, clothing stores, and express shops. The platform integrates seamlessly with major crypto wallets such as Binance, Luno, VALR, and AltCoinTrader, and its proprietary QR scanning technology is already embedded in platforms like Luno, VALR, Blink, and Aqua.

“Today, customers can use Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies to pay for groceries, airtime, electricity, bills, and even travel tickets,” says Van Wyk. “We’re currently processing over $83,000 (R1.4 million) in monthly transaction volume, serving thousands of crypto users nationwide.”

The momentum is further supported by the rising value of Bitcoin, which has surged 128% since 2022, climbing from around $40,000 to approximately $108,000 as of June 2025. This growth is making crypto adoption increasingly attractive for both consumers and merchants.

“Pick n Pay now sees over R1 million in crypto transactions flowing through our tills each month,” says Deven Moodley, Executive Head of Value-Added Services at Pick n Pay. “This aligns perfectly with our Ways2Pay strategy, which aims to offer customers more flexible and inclusive payment options. Our partnership with MoneyBadger is a key step toward a more cashless and accessible economy.”

Looking ahead, MoneyBadger is expanding its merchant network through strategic partnerships with established payment providers. The company is targeting Tier 1 retailers, e-commerce gateways, and QR-based payment networks to broaden its reach.

“This funding round—partly raised in Bitcoin—will accelerate our expansion,” Van Wyk adds. “We’re scaling our services to reach more consumers, more merchants, and more countries. Our vision is simple: a world where you can buy anything with Bitcoin.”

P1 Ventures’ Managing Partner Hisham Halbouny echoes this optimism:

While the West debates crypto regulation, MoneyBadger is making Bitcoin spendable at scale. We’re backing this team because they’ve lived the problem, built in the trenches, and are now scaling a solution that reimagines payments in Africa. We believe the future of crypto utility will be written here.

MoneyBadger’s mission is rooted in permissionless innovation, open systems, and bridging the gap between the Bitcoin economy and traditional retail. With its successful pre-seed raise, the company is poised to reshape South Africa’s financial landscape—making payments more transparent, accessible, and inclusive.