Wave, a Senegal-based mobile money provider and one of Africa’s highest-valued startups, has secured US$137 million in debt financing to expand its mobile money operations and strengthen working capital across both existing and new markets.

The round was led by Rand Merchant Bank (RMB), with participation from development finance institutions including British International Investment (BII), Finnfund, and Norfund.

The funding will support Wave’s efforts to broaden access to low-cost financial services for underserved populations across the continent.

The company, which currently operates in eight West African countries, serves over 20 million monthly users through a network of 150,000 agents and a team of 3,000 employees.

Founded in 2018, Wave has experienced rapid growth by providing simple and affordable mobile money services in a sector historically dominated by telecom operators such as Orange, Free, and Expresso Telecom, who have typically charged fees of up to 10% per transaction.

Wave has sought to disrupt the market by offering free deposits and withdrawals, alongside a flat 1% fee for peer-to-peer transfers.

Featured image credit: Edited by Fintech News Africa, based on image by jcomp via Freepik