Ghanaian fintech startup Oze, which provides digital recordkeeping tools with embedded finance products to MSMEs, has secured an undisclosed amount of funding from investors including Visa and DEG to help it scale its lending management solution.
Launched in beta in 2018, Oze is a mobile app that helps small businesses record their sales, expenses, payables, and receivables. The platform then aggregates that data to provide context specific recommendations and reports. Using this data and machine learning, the startup predicts a business’ credit risk and provides it with affordable capital from its banking partners.
The startup raised a US$3 million pre-Series A round of capital in 2022, and has now followed that up with an undisclosed round that includes global payment leader Visa and German development finance institution DEG. Existing investors including Speedinvest and Africinvest, through its Cathay AfricInvest Innovation Fund, also invested.
With this funding, Oze plans to scale its Lending Management System (LMS), a tool designed to enable financial institutions – including banks, microfinance institutions, and fintechs – to offer unsecured, no-collateral digital loans to merchants and small businesses. The LMS is powered by Oze’s proprietary machine-learning credit risk algorithm, which ensures smarter and more efficient lending decisions.
“This funding will accelerate our mission to empower small businesses across Africa. By scaling our Lending Management System, we can help more financial institutions unlock the potential of SMEs and drive financial inclusion at an unprecedented scale,” said Meghan McCormick, Oze’s co-founder and CEO.
In partnership with commercial banks such as Ecobank, Oze operates in Ghana, Nigeria, Guinea, Benin, Rwanda, Madagascar, Zimbabwe, and Lesotho, with plans to expand further across the continent. The platform provides banks and lenders with tools to automate digital lending, while MSMEs benefit from easy-to-use business management software to track sales, expenses, and customer information. Oze analyzes this data to deliver actionable recommendations, business education, and access to capital.
“Visa is committed to fostering innovation and financial inclusion across Africa, and Oze’s vision aligns perfectly with that mission. Their approach to enabling digital lending for underserved small businesses is transformative, and we are excited to partner with them to drive this change,” said Fabrice Konan, Ghana country manager at Visa.
DEG’s investment comes through its Up-Scaling Programme, which targets high-impact, innovative business models in developing and emerging markets.
“Oze’s technology has the potential to unlock financial opportunities for millions of small businesses in Africa, creating sustainable development and fostering inclusive growth. We are proud to support their expansion.” said Dr Tobias Bidlingmaier, head of Up-Scaling at DEG.
