Editor’s note: African-Startups is a sister publication of EU-Startups, bringing trusted coverage of startups, venture capital, and innovation across Africa.
Kili Ventures, the venture capital firm, has made its fourth investment, backing Jenzy, the African B2B payments infrastructure startup. The investment amount was not disclosed.
Jenzy addresses a persistent problem in African trade: roughly one in four B2B payments across the continent’s $400 billion-plus trade market fails or stalls.
Jenzy was co-founded by Bongani Malaba, Eniola Ajuwon, Daniel Kinuthia, and Faisal Patel, who all have direct experience with the challenges they address.
The company solves payment issues by using a smart system that connects banking networks, mobile money, and regulated stablecoins. This gives businesses a reliable way to send and receive payments.
Jenzy manages the payment process while licensed partners handle the funds. Banks, mobile money operators, and FinTech companies use the platform for transactions every day.
The platform connects twelve African currencies with six reserve currencies and two regulated stablecoins across more than 40 live currency pairs in both directions, spanning markets including Nigeria, Kenya, Ghana, Tanzania, Uganda, Ethiopia, and South Africa.
Each payment moves through one of five rail types, SWIFT, mobile money, stablecoin, local clearing, or T-bills, chosen dynamically based on which route is functioning at the time of the transaction.
If a rail fails during transfer, the payment can switch routes while still keeping its promised arrival time. Jenzy works with licensed partners in all areas it serves, ensuring secure funds and thorough audits. This allows businesses to track the route, rail, and arrival status of each payment instead of leaving them in the dark while waiting.
“With strong early traction, zero customer churn and an experienced team that has lived the problem firsthand, Jenzy is building critical payment infrastructure for African businesses,” says Kili Ventures.
Kili Ventures is focused on early-stage investments in emerging markets, starting with Africa. With over seven years of experience in the innovation ecosystem, the firm aims to connect European and American investors with Africa’s tech scene.
They find investment opportunities through a network of innovation centers, universities, VCs, NGOs, and government bodies, using a custom data-driven approach.
Kili Ventures invests early and helps portfolio companies with market strategies, operational improvements, fundraising, and connections to international investors. Investments are typically made through special purpose vehicles (SPVs) after thorough due diligence on the founders and their business plans.
