Ivorian fintech startup Djamo has closed a $17 million funding round, the largest equity raise ever recorded for a startup in Côte d’Ivoire. The round, led by pan-African VC firm Janngo Capital, surpasses the company’s previous $14 million Series A from 2022 and brings Djamo’s total funding to roughly $34.6 million.
A Niche In Francophone West Africa
Unlike many African fintechs chasing large anglophone markets such as Nigeria, Egypt or South Africa, Djamo has built its business specifically around French-speaking West Africa, starting in Côte d’Ivoire before expanding into Senegal. The startup now serves more than one million customers and roughly 10,000 small and medium-sized businesses across both countries.
Founded in 2020 by CEO Hassan Bourgi and Chief Product and Technology Officer Régis Bamba, Djamo positions itself between mobile money platforms and traditional banks. It offers the accessibility mobile money is known for, paired with more advanced financial tools like savings vaults, investment products and salary-linked accounts, features that basic mobile money wallets typically don’t provide.
Why The Round Matters
Djamo’s approach targets a specific gap. In the West African Economic and Monetary Union region, fewer than 25% of adults hold a formal bank account, even though mobile money usage exceeds 80% in some markets. That leaves a large segment of digitally active but underserved users who have outgrown basic wallets but still find traditional banks too expensive or inaccessible.
Other participants in the round include SANAD Fund for MSMEs, Partech, Oikocredit, Enza Capital and Y Combinator, the Silicon Valley accelerator that admitted Djamo as its first startup from Côte d’Ivoire.
Part Of A Broader Pattern
Djamo’s raise reflects a wider trend of investor interest in African fintechs that combine digital banking with local distribution strategies, following a similar path to Nigeria’s OPay and PalmPay in building super-app-style financial platforms for underbanked populations. Since its inception, Djamo has processed hundreds of millions of dollars in transactions and expanded well beyond its original niche of basic peer-to-peer transfers.
With WAEMU regulators tightening oversight of the fintech sector, Djamo’s ability to keep scaling responsibly, while expanding into new product lines like lending and interest-bearing savings, will likely determine whether it can extend its Francophone Africa lead into a genuinely regional banking platform.
