South African startup Funti3r is helping global businesses get work done efficiently by connecting them with skilled professionals worldwide.
Founded in Cape Town in 2022, Funti3r aims to simplify the entire process of finding, hiring, and paying talent globally, making cross-border collaboration seamless.
“We focus specifically on three critical areas of the workforce lifecycle – skills development, talent management, and impactful business solutions. By outsourcing essential tasks through our platform, businesses can significantly reduce operational costs, increase productivity, and scale rapidly,” Wisani Hlangwane, CEO of Funti3r, told Disrupt Africa.
Hlangwane said the business stemmed from the growing global trend towards remote and flexible work, with businesses increasingly seeking efficient ways to build and manage remote teams internationally.
“At the same time, skilled professionals worldwide, especially in underserved markets, were actively looking for meaningful, high quality global work opportunities. Traditional platforms weren’t effectively addressing the need for easy cross-border collaboration and payments,” he said.
Funti3r bridges this gap by offering seamless, faster blockchain-based payments and AI-driven matching of businesses with skilled global talent. Completely bootstrapped thus far, it has nonetheless navigated typical startup challenges by leveraging key business resources, significantly de-risking its operations, and enabling sustained growth, Hlangwane said.
“We’ve seen substantial forward momentum since our launch, partnering with over 15 businesses, including VC-backed startups, corporates, and scale-ups, within just two years. This robust adoption reflects strong market validation and ongoing demand for our unique value proposition.”
Funti3r, which was a recent winner at the AfricArena Johannesburg Fintech, Deep Tech and Enterprise Summit and also took part in the UCT GSB Solution Space’s e-Track programme, is currently only operating in its main market of South Africa, where Hlangwane says it has a “solid base”.
“We are now actively expanding into European markets, particularly the UK and Ireland, driven by strong demand. Additionally, we’re growing our presence across key African markets like Kenya and Nigeria through strategic partner networks,” he said.
The startup’s primary revenue stream is enterprise and B2B contracts, currently generating over US$5,000 in monthly recurring revenue (MRR).
“Achieving this level of revenue, particularly as a bootstrapped startup, represents a significant milestone in our growth journey,” Hlangwane said.
