Ismail Ahmed, who is behind the first Black-founded fintech company to reach unicorn status in the U.K., has secured additional funding, Bloomberg reports.
In 2009, Ahmed launched Zepz, formerly WorldRemit, and was inspired by the high transaction fees from sending his loved ones money to East Africa. The venture also followed his experience working on a transfer project as part of the United Nations Development Programme, which led him to discover corruption in the UN’s Somalia remittance programme, The Guardian mentions.
“My boss said if I went and submitted the dossier, I would never be able to work in remittances again, and I took that threat very seriously. I lost my job to uncover the fraud,” he told the outlet.
While working through the legal case, Ahmed decided to attend London Business School, a move that would provide him with the blueprint for the company — originally called AfricaRemit. Furthermore, he would receive a financial award for his mistreatment as a result of the case, which supported his company launch.
Ahmed’s LinkedIn states Zepz users, often migrant workers in developing countries, are able to send money instantly or pay bills or school fees to support their loved ones, who can then opt to receive the money through bank deposit or cash collections, among other options.
The conventions of the platform include a Transfer Tracker mobile app that can help the estimated 1.7 billion individuals in the world without a bank account to track their money, Pyments states. It also offers rates that are 46% lower than banks and no hidden fees, per its website.
In 2017, the company was serving over 130 countries, up from the 50 countries it started out supporting.
By 2021, WorldRemit had rebranded under the name Zepz following its acquisition of cross-border payment firm Sendwave, Bloomberg reports. At the time, the company had also reached a valuation of $5 billion.
In October 2024, Zepz was empowered with $267 million in funding to further its reach in other markets including Africa. The round was led by Accel with Leapfrog, TCV, and Coller Capital also participating in the round. Zepz also received a pledge of up to $20 million from the International Financial Corp.