In Africa, one of the most persistent problems, especially for trade, remains the movement of money across borders. Despite numerous fintechs entering the fray, transferring funds between African countries still remains a challenge.
Nigerian fintech startup Cardri wants to change that with its intra-African payment solution.
Founded in 2022 by Bolaji Okunade and Clement David, and in open testing since September 2024, Cardri began as an attempt to solve international card transaction restrictions but evolved into a financial super app that combines payments with AI-driven financial risk management for small businesses, entrepreneurs, and traders across Africa.
The startup is positioned to bridge the financial divide holding back commerce under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
“Cardri is a financial technology company offering payments as well as AI-driven risk management tools for businesses,” Clement David, COO of Cardri recalls, stressing that at the front-burner of what they do is payments for intra-Africa.”
How Cardri works
At its core, Cardri is a cross-border payment and risk management platform designed to make sending and receiving money across African countries as seamless as local transfers. Through its mobile app and WhatsApp-integrated version, users can transfer funds in naira directly to recipients in other African currencies without first converting to dollars.
Currently headquartered in Abuja, Nigeria, Cardri supports payments to 20 African countries and global payouts to 92 countries. A user in Nigeria can send money to someone in Kenya in Kenyan shillings, instantly and transparently, at the prevailing exchange rate.
The platform also offers instant domiciliary funding and even supports top-up of Alipay and Chinese accounts, opening up frontiers for businesses and individuals engaged in international trade. Users can authenticate their payments using PINS or fingerprints.
So far, over 1,500 users have already processed more than $500,000 in transactions through the platform. The app also includes wallet functionality, enabling users to fund accounts, hold balances, and make local or international payments in real time.
“We’ve gotten this much traction because the problem exists and people are interested more than we expected. We want to create more value for the continent,” Okunade, CEO of Cardri, says.
But Cardri isn’t just another payment app. It is integrating an AI-powered risk management engine into its payment systems, allowing businesses and individuals to hedge against currency fluctuations and commodity price changes.
Business model
Cardri’s business model is straightforward: the company makes money from transaction fees, typically less than 1% per transfer, which is lower than traditional banking routes, depending on the transaction type.
The company also makes a profit on the exchange rate when users swap currencies (e.g., swapping Naira for CFA Francs to pay in Benin). Cardri has generated $8,000 in revenue.
While intra-African payments are currently offered for free as part of Cardri’s market-entry strategy, most of the company’s $8,000 in revenue has come from global payout transactions. The founders explain that offering free African transfers is a way to attract early users and build trust before scaling paid features.
“Because of our market research, we’re very big on intra-Africa. Also, this is the time that the AFCTA is intensifying efforts for the ease of doing business across Africa, and payments are the backbone of business.”
Cardri remains bootstrapped but is currently raising a seed round to expand its market presence and accelerate growth. Despite minimal marketing, its user base has grown organically, a sign, the founders believe, of how strongly the solution resonates with businesses facing everyday cross-border payment hurdles.
While Cardri’s mission to simplify intra-Africa payments is highly valuable and necessary, the business model faces substantial risks across competition, regulation, infrastructure, and revenue Sustainability.
Cardri is up against fintech giants that offer similar (or broader) cross-border services, including Flutterwave, Chipper Cash, and Leatherback. These firms have massive funding, existing pan-African licenses, and vast agent networks that Cardri must match or beat.
Also, to operate legally in multiple African countries, Cardri requires different licenses (e.g., money transfer operator, payment service provider) in every single jurisdiction. This is incredibly costly, time-consuming, and resource-intensive, requiring specialised compliance teams for each market.
Competitive advantage
Africa’s fintech scene is crowded, with the likes of Opay, Flutterwave, and the latest Pan African Payment and Settlement System (PAPPS). However, Cadri believes it stands apart with its AI-driven risk management tool.
This AI feature allows users to lock in exchange rates or commodity prices, protecting businesses from unpredictable currency devaluations or inflation. For example, a farmer can lock in today’s maize price to avoid losses from future price drops, while a manufacturer can secure stable input costs ahead of production.
Cadri’s AI and machine learning systems analyse price patterns and recommend appropriate margins for hedging contracts, enabling affordable participation in derivatives trading. Unlike traditional exchanges like NGX, Cadri’s system allows for instant settlement, running 24/7, not bound by market hours.
Another advantage is accessibility. The startup plans to make its services available directly on WhatsApp, enabling users to send money or perform transactions with voice commands or by snapping a picture of an account number.
“One of our biggest advantages is that we are building a product that is stupidly simple. We are taking the product to where most customers are, WhatsApp.”
The future of Cardri
The company is awaiting licensing from Nigeria’s Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to roll out its derivatives and financial risk management platform by Q1 2026.
Before then, Cardri plans to release its WhatsApp transaction interface by the end of November 2025, allowing users to make both local and international payments directly through the messaging app.
In the long term, the startup envisions itself as a continental financial infrastructure layer, powering trade, agriculture, and cross-border business across Africa.
“Payments are the backbone of trade. If you can fix how money moves across Africa, you can fix how business works in Africa.”
Cardri’s broader goal is to democratise access to financial tools once reserved for big institutions, helping SMEs, traders, and even farmers manage financial risks and protect their incomes.
