For founders of Fatura, the Egyptian tech-driven Business-to-Business (B2B) ecommerce platform with a regional footprint of 22 governorates in Egypt, the journey has temporarily come to an end and an important milestone has been recorded in their three year journey so far. This is because Tanmeyah for Microfinance Services, a wholly-owned subsidiary of EFG Hermes Holding and Egypt’s leading provider of microfinance solutions, has announced that it has bought Netherlands incorporated startup. 

Fatura has previously been supported by important shareholders in the area, with EFG EV Fintech being one of the primary investors since 2020.

This exit confirms that Fatura’s investment has paid off, allowing the company to expand the amount of its business. 

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“I feel incredibly proud of what we have achieved at Fatura and I am super excited about the upcoming chapter in our story. In just 2 years, and backed by a solid team of 500 believers, we have built a solid startup that has grown exponentially across the whole nation and impacted over 60,000 merchants. We are honoured to be setting the benchmark in the Egyptian startup ecosystem for M&A between digital disruptors and industry leaders, and firmly believe that this milestone will ignite a wave of more successful examples. Together with Tanmeyah, we aim to fundamentally change how B2B works in Egypt, radically facilitating the way trade, financing and payments are done. Through this acquisition, Fatura will strongly benefit from Tanmeyah’s broad client base and solid financial position to unlock more opportunities,” Hossam Ali, CEO of Fatura, said. 

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. Hossam AlNaggar, CEO of Tanmeyah, also commented on the acquisition saying “We are extremely proud of this transaction. Fatura is a key addition to Tanmeyah’s portfolio, as it offers the company a faster route to digitally transform and develop.

Our new consolidated product and service offerings confirm our focus on supporting the Egyptian economy from the ground up as they will aid microenterprises in ordering inventory from wholesalers through a one-of-a-kind digital marketplace. We see a huge financing gap in the B2B segment and, by joining forces, we will be able to power digital lending and cover more sectors in Egypt. Microfinance continues to play a key role in helping low-income households to access opportunities, stabilize their income flows, and cope with inflationary pressure.”

By the end of 1Q22, Tanmeyah’s total number of clients had grown to reach a record high of 391,000 and its portfolio reached c. EGP 3.9 billion — its highest level since inception. 

Why The Acquisition?

Fatura’s Gross Merchandise Value (GMV) and number of active users have increased significantly over the years, notably after two successful rounds of investment from six different venture capital funds and other renowned angel investors.

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Tanmeyah and Fatura’s merging as complementary firms provides a chance for both to deliver competitive and creative market solutions.

Tanmeyah’s digital transformation plan includes leveraging Fatura’s platform to create new and disruptive financial solutions to boost business growth. Tanmeyah can also have access to Fatura’s rapidly expanding merchant network, filling a significant vacuum in the B2B credit market.

Tanmeyah’s vast geographical footprint and diverse client base will assist Fatura in expanding its merchant network and expanding into new sectors of the B2B market, while its excellent financial position and availability to capital will aid Fatura’s growth.

Commenting on the acquisition, Karim Awad, Group CEO of EFG Hermes Holding said:

 “This acquisition marks a major milestone for Tanmeyah, which has grown to become a key player under our Non-Bank Financial Institutions (NBFI) platform. Tanmeyah turned to this strategic acquisition to bolster its digital transformation and enrich its product and service offerings to become more holistic and support Egypt’s microfinance space. I am proud that all our NBFI brands continue to fuel the drive for digital transformation in Egypt as we continue building synergies by means of effective cross-selling, which helps diversify the offerings across our product and service portfolio, further supporting financial inclusion. We’ve always seen potential in Fatura, and we are firm believers in its ability to innovate in the B2B digital space, which is why our very own EFG EV Fintech made the decision to become one of the early investors in the company years ago.”

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Tanmeyah will own 100% of Fatura Netherlands B.V. following the acquisition, and the founders of Fatura will continue to oversee the firm as part of the Tanmeyah management team while becoming Tanmeyah shareholders. Fatura stockholders will get a mix of internally generated cash and Tanmeyah treasury shares.

“Tanmeyah’s acquisition of Fatura, backed by Egypt Ventures, and its accelerator “EFG EV Fintech”, which is a partnership with EFG Hermes Holding, comes in line with the Government of Egypt’s efforts to increase the involvement of, and to empower, the private sector, as a major driver of comprehensive and sustainable economic growth,” H.E. Dr. Rania A. Al-Mashat, Egypt’s Minister of International Cooperation, said, adding that Egypt Ventures, Egypt’s first venture capital business with government funding, has succeeded in optimising the return on investment in numerous pioneering young enterprises in their sectors.

Egypt Ventures and its two business accelerators have invested in over 175 firms since 2017, and the future period will see more success stories in assisting start-ups and exits that increase the private sector’s role in economic development.

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A Look At What Fatura Does

Fatura, founded in 2019 by Hossam Ali, Ahmed Anwar, and Abdullah Mohebeldin, brings retailers, producers, and wholesalers together in one place. Fatura provides a wide range of unique services to its users, including a marketplace with live product viewing and price transparency, B2B purchase now pay later services, and marketing support services.

Sawari Ventures, Arzan VC, Egypt Ventures, Khawarizmi Ventures, EFG-EV, and the Cairo Angels previously led a $3 million Series A round for the firm.

Fatura B2B Ecommerce Fatura B2B Ecommerce

Charles Rapulu Udoh

Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based lawyer, who has several years of experience working in Africa’s burgeoning tech startup industry. He has closed multi-million dollar deals bordering on venture capital, private equity, intellectual property (trademark, patent or design, etc.), mergers and acquisitions, in countries such as in the Delaware, New York, UK, Singapore, British Virgin Islands, South Africa, Nigeria etc. He’s also a corporate governance and cross-border data privacy and tax expert. 
As an award-winning writer and researcher, he is passionate about telling the African startup story, and is one of the continent’s pioneers in this regard. You can book a session and speak with him using the link: https://insightsbyexperts.com/view_expert/charles-rapulu-udoh

Fatura, a Cairo-based B2B ecommerce marketplace, has secured $3 million in a pre-Series A round led by Sawari Ventures and Arzan Venture Capital. The deal also included Egypt Ventures, EFG-EV, Cairo Angels, and Khwarizmi Ventures. In July 2020, the company raised an unknown amount of money in a seed round. 

With this financing, Fatura will be able to expand its services beyond e-commerce and digital financing, allowing it to optimize the interchange of products, money, and information in the B2B environment while concentrating on ease and user experience.

“There is a great opportunity in the B2B space in Egypt, that is growing as the players are becoming digitally mature and ready. Collectively, the digital B2B players in the FMCG space capture less than five per cent of the market and there is a long way to go. Our conviction is to stay asset-light, be inclusive to all the industry stakeholders and to attract the best on-ground acquisition force across the country,” Hossam Ali, Fatura’s CEO, said in a statement. 

Why The Investors Invested

Fatura has established a solid basis and infrastructure for monetizing its data and services. New services to serve the many actors in the company’s ecosystem, such as manufacturers, wholesalers, and retailers, as well as diverse digitisation projects with an emphasis on digital payments and regional development into new markets, are among the company’s future ambitions.

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“Fatura’s existing infrastructure has enabled them to expand their offerings to new customers,” commented Hany Al-Sonbaty, Managing Partners at Sawari Ventures, adding that, “the team has demonstrated that they have the vision to identify new opportunities and the prowess and agility to implement and deliver. We are excited to become part of their journey.”

“Being part of Fatura’s success story is exciting for us. The FMCG industry is in need of Fatura’s product, which will solve many challenges faced by small retailers. Also, its fintech angle complements the core product and enables retailers to scale their business further with less working capital constraints,” Hasan J. Zainal, Managing Partner of Arzan Venture Capital said. 

Khwarizmi Ventures recently participated in Egyptian ecommerce logistics startup, Bosta’s $6.7 million Series A round. 

A Look At What The Startup Does

The B2B marketplace began in late 2019 and has already exceeded 1 billion EGP in annual GMV, and that’s just in the FMCG industry. The Fatura smartphone app links wholesalers and manufacturers with retailers across a wide range of sectors. The company has been functioning in the FMCG market and is now experimenting with other industries.

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The firm has also expanded its reach to more than 25,000 stores and 500 wholesalers and manufacturers throughout 20 governorates, exchanging more than 10,000 SKUs in the last year. Fatura also pierced the surface of financial services by offering digital lending with a focus on retail financing, with plans to expand its retail financing offerings in the near future.

Fatura ecommerce Fatura ecommerce

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

Egyptian B2B e-commerce platform Fatura, which connects FMCG wholesalers to retailers and a digital lending platform for small merchants, has raised a seven-figure US dollar seed round to help it scale. 

“Egypt has more than 5,000 wholesalers, investing heavily to build another one will not solve the existing inefficiencies at scale. This capital-intensive approach never made sense to us in light of the Egyptian market’s realities. Alternatively, we are on a mission to curate a network of 200–250 wholesalers across the country, digitally transform the way they work, and enable them to collectively lead the FMCG distribution business nationally,” said Hossam Ali, Fatura’s co-founder and chief executive officer (CEO).

Why The Investors Invested

Mohamed Okasha, Disruptech’s managing partner, said his firm was excited to lead Fatura’s investment round.

“We firmly believe in the opportunity that lies in the digitisation of the wholesale-retail relationship. Disruptech sees Fatura playing an essential role to transform the market and we are committed to helping Fatura achieve its mission,” he said.

Zeina Mandour, general manager of the Cairo Angels, said she was pleased to have closed this investment round and to have co-invested with other local investors.

“We are very confident in the Fatura team. We have no doubt that they will use this seven-figure investment to scale and provide their services throughout all of Egypt,” she said.

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A Look At What The Startup Does

Founded by Hossam Ali, Ahmed Anwar and AbdAllah Mohebeldin, who were later joined by Ahmed Al Bakary, Fatura was established to meet the demand of FMCG retailers by providing a simple-to-use mobile application that allows them to access a network of carefully vetted wholesalers.

The startup leverages the underutilised assets already owned by wholesalers and uses technology to resolve existing supply chain inefficiencies for all relevant stakeholders including retailers, wholesalers, and manufacturers. In addition to the one-stop-shop offering of more than 1,500 available SKUs, Fatura is on its way to offer working capital loans to its retailers, leveraging the data derived from transactions to analyse retailers’ behaviour and credit worthiness.

Fatura’s objective is to become the largest e-wholesaler in Egypt and Africa, and it has been boosted in its pursuit of this goal having raised a seven-figure seed funding round led by Disruptech, Egypt’s first fintech-focused VC Fund, with the participation of EFG EV and Cairo Angels.

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