Ghanaian fintech startup Affinity has been designed to serve the “African majority”, including informal sector workers and first-time banking users, with access to a variety of financial services.
Formed in 2022 by Tarek Mouganie, and publicly launched last year, Affinity is a fully regulated, branchless digital banking platform that provides affordable and accessible financial services to individuals and MSMEs across Ghana.
The company offers a full suite of financial services, including personal and SMEs accounts, savings, payments, money transfers to banks and mobile money wallets, investments, and loans.
“The platform is designed to serve the African majority, including informal sector workers and first-time banking users, making it the most inclusive and cost-effective banking option in the market,” Mouganie told Disrupt Africa.
Affinity was founded after Mouganie acquired a local microfinance institution and secured a license upgrade from the Bank of Ghana in March 2022, the first such license granted in over a decade. The company officially launched operations in October 2024 following the regulator’s approval of its mobile app earlier in the year.
“In Ghana, micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) form the backbone of the economy, representing approximately 80 per cent of employment, yet remain largely informal and excluded from traditional financial systems. Over 90 per cent of these businesses lack access to formal credit, limiting their ability to grow, hire, or scale operations,” said Mouganie.
“Traditional banks often overlook this segment. As their cost structures are large – anchored in branches, manual processes, and high overhead – they are unable to serve lower-income, informal business owners profitably and, therefore, tend to neglect this segment. Meanwhile, mobile money platforms, though widely used, only support basic payments and transfers, often at a high cost, and do not offer comprehensive banking services such as savings accounts, business credit, or investment options.”
Affinity meets the needs of this segment differently. With a fully digital, branchless model, the company operates at a fraction of the cost of traditional banks, and can serve a wider base of customers.
“Affinity is the primary banking relationship to nearly 90 per cent of its users, which allows it to build robust data-driven credit profiles for underwriting. This approach has delivered exceptional loan performance with repayment rates of 97 per cent across the lending portfolio, and 99 per cent for instant loans,” Mouganie said.
Affinity’s loan portfolio is built around what local MSMEs actually need, from instant loans for cash flow, to working capital for operations, and growth loans to invest in scaling, he said.
“Combined with no monthly fees or transaction charges, and some of the most affordable rates in Ghana, Affinity is one of the cheapest digital lenders in the market, enabling financial inclusion where previously neglected,” said Mouganie.
Earlier this year, the startup closed a US$8 million oversubscribed seed round of funding, led by Backed VC and Grazia Equity. That said, Affinity remains focused on scaling operations in Ghana, where the company has expanded its customer base since official launch to over 70,000.
The company charges no fees to users.
“Over 90 per cent of revenue is generated through the lending portfolio, while the remainder comes from commissions on services like bill payments. The company has a low-cost operating structure that enables it to serve customers at a significantly more efficient rate than traditional players,” said Mouganie.
