Grey, Nigeria’s Fintech Startup Picks Kenya for its East African Hub

In order to expand its operations into the larger East African market, Nigerian fintech startup Grey has chosen Kenya as its East African hub.

The expansion comes after the firm raised Sh273.8 million from investors.

Investors included Y Combinator, Soma Capital, Heirloom Fund, True Culture Fund, angel investors Alan Rutledge, Samvit Ramadurgam, Karthik Ramakrishnan, and other high-profile investors.

The platform launched in both Kenya and Tanzania with more than 300,000 users.

It will also see expansion opportunities in Uganda and Rwanda soon.

The Nairobi headquarters will help Grey in navigating the larger East African Community (EAC), according to CEO AIdorenyin Obong.

“Kenya’s Diaspora remittance is very vibrant as remittance inflows to Kenya have increased tenfold in the last 15 years reaching an all-time record of USD 3,718 million in rv,” Obong said.

“This phenomenal growth points to the importance of remittances as a source of foreign exchange to the country, equivalent to more than 3 percent of Kenya’s GDP,” he added.

Kenya, behind Nigeria and Ghana, was listed as one of Africa’s top three recipients of remittances from the diaspora in a World Bank report that was published last year.

“More Kenyans are working remotely for companies abroad where payments tend to be tedious and expensive,” Obong stated.

“Our solution allows African Freelancers to have foreign accounts and seamlessly receive money worldwide and be globally competitive.”

Grey, a fintech firm with Y-combinator backing, was founded in 2021 and provides an international money transfer service that enables users to send and receive money internationally rapidly and without limitations.

It offers free virtual international bank accounts and cards to its customers, allowing them to make payments abroad easily.

Users can create a foreign USD, GBP, and EUR bank account for free, send money to the UK and Europe, and receive payments from over 88 countries.

Last year, the tech firm partnered with Cellulant to be the company’s payments processor, powering its customers, and Moringa School to increase awareness and empower digital nomads on financial literacy in collaboration with Safaricom, Antler, and Nairobi Garage.

The company has also privately launched Grey Business, a borderless business banking service for startups where they can get instant international payments and currency conversions for their businesses.

Companies can also open US Bank accounts online with no minimum balance, monthly fees, or hidden fees.

The company also offers conversion directly to local currencies.

Likewise, it lets users receive foreign payments in their preferred foreign currency and withdraw directly to mobile money or their local bank account.