Cape Town-based digital identity startup iiDENTIFii has raised US$15 million in growth capital to fuel its expansion across Africa.
iiDENTIFii has developed advanced face authentication technology that safely authenticates users via their cell phones or PCs within seconds. The startup operates across several industry verticals and is used by the largest pan-African banks, insurers and mining houses for both customer and employee authentication.
Its US$15 million funding round was led by African investment company Arise, whose cornerstone investors include Rabobank Partnerships, Norfund, NorFinance and FMO. Investors in the round alongside Arise are growth-stage private equity firm Sanari Capital and veteran US tech entrepreneur Bill Spruill.
iiDENTIFii will use this investment to fund its expansion across Africa. Cybercrime within the financial sector is a growing threat to the continent, and the startup believes its biometric authentication, which protects access to sensitive financial information, can be an integral part of financial inclusion, digital inclusion, and identity inclusion on the continent.
“I’m incredibly proud of our engineering team and our growth as a company over the past three years,” said iiDENTIFii founder and CEO Gur Geva. “This investment validates our central business thesis that we are the preferred partner for enterprise-grade identity in Africa. We’re excited to put the investment to work as we close in on our goal of authenticating every face in Africa. With this new funding and the networks of Arise, Sanari, and Bill – we confidently continue our mission of stopping identity theft in Africa.”
Arise CEO Gavin Tipper said iiDENTIFii complemented his firm’s portfolio of bank investments across Sub-Saharan Africa, and also heralded its first foray into the African fintech market.
“We are excited about our partnership with iiDENTIFii, which will allow us to offer their unique technology to banks in Sub-Saharan Africa, strengthening digital anti-money laundering practices and advancing financial inclusion,” he said.
