Nomba raises $3m to expand cross-border payments

Nigerian fintech Nomba has raised a $3 million debt facility from CardinalStone Finance Company Limited.

The funding will help the company expand its cross-border payments infrastructure from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) into other African markets.

The facility will provide additional US dollar liquidity through Nomba’s banking relationships in Hong Kong and Singapore. The fintech said this will help it support more transactions and settle payments faster.

Nomba currently processes more than $480 million in cross-border payments each month. The volume comes from its DRC operations and Canadian-licensed money service business.

The company is targeting more than $1 billion in monthly cross-border payments as it expands its network.

The DRC is central to that strategy. Nomba entered the market in November 2025 after building a network of agents in Kinshasa.

The company initially focused on remittances. Its agents handled inflows from major corridors, including China and Dubai.

Nomba has since expanded into business payments. Businesses using its DRC service can collect payments online or through point-of-sale terminals.

They can also accept card and mobile money payments. The service allows them to pay suppliers in Asia.

The company now wants to use the DRC as a settlement base for trade between Central Africa and Asia. Currency access and slow settlement remain challenges for businesses operating across these markets.

“This facility gives us more room to move — more liquidity, more corridors, faster settlement,” said Yinka Adewale, CEO of Nomba.

The fintech has already begun piloting a DRC-to-Zambia payment corridor. It also sees opportunities linking the DRC with Uganda, Kenya and Angola.

Trade between the DRC and China reached $26.7 billion in 2025. China imported $21.6 billion worth of goods from the DRC and exported $5.1 billion to the country.

Nomba plans to raise another $20 million to $50 million in debt in stages. The additional capital will help it increase its capacity to support cross-border trade.

The company raised $30 million in a 2023 pre-Series B round. That round valued Nomba at more than $150 million.

Founded in 2017 as Kudi.AI, Nomba initially operated as an AI chatbot for online payments. It later moved into agency banking before becoming a broader payments and banking provider for businesses.

“This transaction reflects our confidence in the growth opportunity presented by cross-border payments,” said Ayoola Adeola, managing director of CardinalStone Finance.

Nomba said it plans to use cross-border demand to establish new payment corridors. It will then assess whether those markets offer enough opportunity for deeper local operations.