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Raenest is a Financial Technology (FinTech) company that provides global money transfer services, virtual and physical cards, multi-currency accounts, and smart invoicing solutions.
Raenest has raised $14.7M across 3 funding rounds.
Raenest has raised $14.7M in total across 3 funding rounds.
Raenest has raised $14.7M in total across 3 funding rounds.
Raenest's investors include QED Investors, Outliers Capital, Pact VC, Melvina Ventures, Techstars.
Raenest is a financial technology (FinTech) company founded in 2021 and headquartered in Lagos, Nigeria, that provides multi-currency financial services for businesses and individuals, including global accounts, virtual bank accounts, invoicing, payroll, customizable virtual cards, fast money transfers, and USD checking accounts backed by Regent Bank.[1][3][4] It primarily serves freelancers, creators, remote workers, travelers, online shoppers, students, social sellers, and over 600 businesses, solving cross-border payment challenges by enabling seamless receipt of payments from platforms like Upwork, Fiverr, Andela, and Toptal, with features like instant transfers, competitive FX rates, cashback rewards, and withdrawals to 70+ countries.[2][3][4] The platform emphasizes reliability, with payments promised in as little as 2 minutes, and has gained traction through tools like Geegpay (its flagship product) and recent expansions such as U.S. accounts and FastTrack for Upwork payments in under an hour, fostering growth among global digital workers and African users entering the global economy.[2][5]
Raenest emerged from the need to simplify cross-border payments for freelancers, remote workers, and businesses in Africa, founded in 2021 by a team of three collaborators focused on resilience and problem-solving in an "exciting problem space."[1][2] The idea stemmed from empowering Africans to participate fully in the global economy, building a trusted platform for sending and receiving money reliably, with early emphasis on community growth from a small idea to a global operation.[2] Pivotal moments include the launch of Geegpay as a core product that transformed payment experiences—saving businesses through faster, cheaper tools—and evolution into a broader "global money partner" with U.S. expansion via Regent Bank partnerships, virtual/physical USD cards, and features like Raenest FastTrack and Recap.[2][3][4][5]
Raenest rides the surge in remote work, freelancing, and Africa's digital economy integration, addressing pain points in cross-border payments amid rising global platforms like Upwork and Deel, where freelancers need fast, affordable USD access without high fees or delays.[2][3] Timing aligns with post-2021 FinTech boom in emerging markets, competing with players like MoneyGram, Canta, AzamPay, and Verto by focusing on African/global user trust and U.S. banking partnerships (Regent Bank/FDIC-approved), which enable compliant, scalable infrastructure amid regulatory demands.[1][4] It influences the ecosystem by empowering underserved creators/remote workers—over 600 businesses and growing communities—to compete globally, fostering economic inclusion and reducing remittance frictions in a market projected for massive cross-border growth.[2][3]
Raenest is poised for accelerated expansion by deepening U.S./global integrations, launching more FastTrack-like features, and scaling its community-driven model to capture rising freelance economies in Africa and beyond.[2][5] Trends like AI-enhanced FX, embedded finance, and regulatory easing for FinTechs will propel it, potentially evolving from payment facilitator to full neo-bank alternative with savings/investment tools already teased.[3] Its influence could grow by setting reliability standards, attracting more VC backing, and inspiring African FinTechs, ultimately making "global money" as local as home—building on its origin as a three-person idea into a trusted powerhouse for borderless finance.[2]
Raenest has raised $14.7M across 3 funding rounds. Most recently, it raised $11.0M Series A in February 2025.
| Date | Round | Lead Investors | Other Investors | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 1, 2025 | $11M Series A | QED Investors | Outliers Capital, Pact VC | Announced |
| Mar 1, 2023 | $3M Seed | — | Melvina Ventures, Techstars | Announced |
| May 1, 2022 | $700K Seed | — | Melvina Ventures, Techstars | Announced |
