Nigerian startup Grey is allowing users to easily exchange to local currency and access foreign currencies in their accounts.
Launched in 2021 by Idorenyin Obong and Femi Aghedo, Grey offers an international money transfer service that enables its users to send and receive international payments without restrictions quickly. Its products include foreign bank accounts, instant currency exchange, and international money transfers.
The Y Combinator-backed fintech startup raised a US$2 million funding round last August, and is busy expanding. Disrupt Africa reported last month the startup had chosen Kenya as its East African hub.
“At Grey, we believe everyone should have access to the global economy, regardless of their location or background. With this in mind, we have created an easy-to-use, secure, and reliable platform,” said Aghedo.
“We identified a gap in the market for foreign bank accounts for Africans. We observed that many Africans needed help to receive payments from foreign employers because of the limitations of traditional banks. We believed we could positively impact by offering a platform allowing Africans to access foreign bank accounts quickly and effortlessly.”
Last year’s funding, as well as partnerships with several global financial institutions, has helped Grey to expand its services and increase its reach.
“We are proud of the significant milestones we have achieved so far. We continue to work hard toward our global vision of empowering digital nomads, creatives, and businesses,” said Aghedo.
“Since our launch, we have seen significant growth in Africans using our platform to access virtual foreign bank accounts. This uptake has been fantastic, and we are thrilled to be making a positive impact in the lives of our customers.”
Currently live in Nigeria, Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania, Grey plans to expand to other African countries.
“People in different parts of the world also use our service. We believe that our services can help people all over the continent to access financial services and participate in the global economy,” said Aghedo.
Grey’s revenue model is based on transaction charges. “We are pleased with our company’s financial performance and our business’s growth potential,” Aghedo said.
One of the biggest challenges the startup has faced in launching was navigating the regulatory environment in Africa’s fintech sector.
“However, we have overcome these challenges and successfully launched our services. We are committed to working with regulators and policymakers to create a more supportive environment for fintech startups in Nigeria and across Africa,” said Aghedo.
“Additionally, we had to deal with several operational challenges during the launch process. For instance, we had to develop a robust and secure platform to handle the high volume of anticipated transactions. We also had to ensure our platform was user-friendly, reliable, and accessible to our target market.”
