Agent Banking Company (ABC), a Ugandan fintech, has received an undisclosed investment from Goodwell Investments.
The investment, derived from Goodwell’s €150 million uMunthu II Fund, will help ABC expand its client base, increase agent coverage, and introduce new services. uMunthu II Fund targets early-stage growth companies in Africa, particularly in the sectors of financial services, food, agriculture, mobility, and logistics.
Started in 2017 by Uganda Banker’s Association (UBA), the umbrella organization for commercial banks in Uganda, and pan-African technology company, Eclectics, ABC facilitates access to financial services in underserved areas through its interoperable digital platforms.
Similar to the mobile money model, agent banking empowers commercial banks to appoint agents to provide banking services such as deposits, withdrawals, and more on their behalf. According to ABC, agents can be the local shopkeeper, kiosk owners, supermarket attendant or anyone in your community who has been authorized by your bank.
The financial services currently offered through the ABC platform include cash deposits, cash withdrawals, bill payments and money transfers.
The platform enables commercial banks to:
- Enhance customer experience
- Reduce the cost to serve and
- Increase coverage while avoiding duplication of investment and effort
At the end of 2021, there were 22 commercial banks with 20,108 agents enrolled on the platform, according to the ABC website. Between 2018 and 2021, agents on the platform cumulatively processed over 12 million transactions worth $ 4.3 billion.
“Our business was established to address a very real need to expand the reach and improve access to quality and affordable financial services in Uganda.
With the introduction of Agent Banking, there has been exponential growth in the number of service points through which consumers can access and use formal financial services offered by over 15,000 authorized bank agents. This has made it much easier and enabled the previously underserved communities to enjoy a range of formal financial services across the country,” said CEO Richard Jabel.
According to ABC CEO, Richard Jabel, the investment from Goodwell “will be instrumental in the next phase of our growth, as we enrich our service range to encompass the full suite of basic financial services to be accessed through mobile phones, agents, and merchants.”
For Goodwell, said to be the oldest impact investor in the Netherlands, the investment also serves as its entry into Uganda’s financial inclusion sector, the investor announced on September 19 2024. Its 36 portfolio companies have reached over 30 million households in 72 countries worldwide.
Last year [2023], Goodwell partnered with Oxfam Novib to launch a €20 million fund aimed at investing in sustainable agriculture, clean energy, mobility, logistics, and waste management across East Africa.
Els Boerhof, Managing Partner and Co-Owner of Goodwell Investments, says that Africa offers ‘huge potential’ for investors.
“It is very important people realise that economic cycles come and go and that this is a very interesting moment to step in,” Boerhof said at the time.
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“All I say is: ‘Don’t miss the boat’.”
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