HUB2, a startup based off the East African island of Réunion as well as in Ivory Coast, and which supports the digital transformation of major players in the African economy (mainly insurance and bank) has announced it had raised $1.8m from investment funds APICAP and COMPASS, and BPI Réunion.
This new fundraising will allow HUB2 to accelerate the development of its portfolio of innovative products and services, the primary goal of which is to significantly transform the payment and distribution routes offered by insurance companies, brokers, retailers, and generally financial companies, in the CIMA zone, made up of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Congo, Cote d’Ivoire, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Guinea Bissau Mali, Niger, Senegal and Togo.
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“We have been working for several years to make insurance products more accessible to the African population through the digitization of premium payment and claims payment transactions via mobile money and bank cards. Partnerships with “phygital” distribution networks (in particular with Intouch Group) are at the heart of building our strong differentiation for the insurance sector, with the firm intention of becoming the benchmark solution throughout the region. CIMA, ”says Ashley Gauzere, founder of HUB2.
Here Is What You Need To Know
- With this investment, APICAP and COMPASS, joins its historical partner the BPI Réunion, to accelerate its growth and deploy its commercial offer on the African territory.
- In 2018, Hub2.Io raised $295,000 Seed from Compass Venture Capital.
- It also won the Overseas Innovation Competition, and the prize for the best Overseas startup at NxSe that same year.
- HUB2 was also recognized in 2020 by the Federation of Insurance Companies under African Law (FANAF) as one of the 10 best companies offering digitalization solutions to African insurers, as well as by Hannover Re, the 3rd largest reinsurer in the world.
Why The Investors Invested
The insurance sector in Africa is entering a phase of profound change driven by an increasingly demanding context: new customer habits, significant competition and strong development potential. Digitization appears to be the next growth driver for insurance companies. Indeed, digital tools provide solutions to their main problems to conquer market share and increase policyholder satisfaction.
“As president of the French Tech community in Réunion, I can only be delighted to see HUB2 lead to this fundraising which marks a first for our ecosystem in the world of fintech and insurance. French Tech will provide all possible support to help HUB2 achieve its objectives by deploying as quickly as possible and thus promote Reunion’s innovation on the African continent,” says Manuel WARLOP, president of French tech Réunion.
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A Look At What HUB2 Does
Founded in 2018 by Ashley Gauzere, HUB2 is a Business-to-Business (B2B) solution for e-merchant in WEST AFRICA, that allows payment trough Mobile Banking, Credit Card. HUB2 solutions are mostly based on innovative payment technologies (Robotic Process Automation, Blockchain), to allow customers to receive their receipts and make their payments through various channels, mainly mobile money, bank cards and transfers.
HUB2 services are available in Côte d’Ivoire, Senegal, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Mali, Guinea, Togo, Benin and Gabon.
HUB2 already provides access to more than twenty mobile money operators in 9 countries of the African continent such as Cote d’Ivoire, Senegal, Mali or Burkina Faso and wishes to open up to 11 new countries in 2021.
In 2020, HUB2 extended its expertise to integrations of payment solutions on physical terminals, notably by becoming the supplier of the exclusive distributor of Ingenico terminals in Côte d’Ivoire and in the sub-region.
The startup has also signed a partnership with fintech Intouch, giving its customers access to a large network of physical points where users can perform digital and cash payment transactions. Today, HUB2 is the privileged partner of companies such as Leadway, ASCOMA, or OLEA.
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Hub2 is located in Reunion at the Village by CA, as well as in Abidjan where 8 people work on the development of the startup. The fundraising will also allow new recruitments to strengthen the current team of 13 people.
- Reunion is an overseas department and region of the French Republic and an Indian Ocean island in East Africa.
- The CIMA zone covers 14, mostly francophone, countries who have adopted and harmonized their insurance laws and regulations.
Charles Rapulu Udoh
Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based lawyer who has advised startups across Africa on issues such as startup funding (Venture Capital, Debt financing, private equity, angel investing etc), taxation, strategies, etc. He also has special focus on the protection of business or brands’ intellectual property rights ( such as trademark, patent or design) across Africa and other foreign jurisdictions.
He is well versed on issues of ESG (sustainability), media and entertainment law, corporate finance and governance.
He is also an award-winning writer
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