Be Mobile Africa, the pan-African neobank, will sell a significant amount of its technology assets to Dubai-based fintech Dunes, BW TechZone has learned.
Be Mobile Africa will sell key components of its banking and cryptocurrency infrastructure to Dunes, which is looking to build a platform which will “seamlessly integrate cryptocurrency and traditional banking services. Financial details of the transaction were not disclosed. The transaction will be completed by the end of the second quarter.
Be Mobile Africa launched in South Africa in September 2022 to “make banking accessible to the unbanked and underbanked in the country.” The company’s app enable customers to hold, send and receive funds in multiple currencies including USD and EUR. It also has a savings offering which it claims allows customers to earn 5% interest per annum in USD and EUR. In 2023, the company also launched a crypto trading platform.
One of the technology infrastructures Be Mobile Africa will offload is the Be Network, an infrastructure facilitating real-time settlement of fiat and cryptocurrency transactions. Be Mobile Africa will however retain banking services infrastructure for the African continent.
According to Be Mobile Africa co-founder and CEO Dr Cédric Jeannot, the transaction will inject vital financial resources into Be Mobile Africa. “We are looking forward to using a large part of the proceeds of this transaction to double down on the African markets and lift even more people out of poverty,” Jeannot said in a statement.