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Proparco partners with Cashi to expand access to essential financial services in Sudan

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Proparco is investing €600,000 into Cashi, a fintech company developing digital payment solutions to expand access to financial services across overlooked markets in Africa. This financing will support Cashi’s operations in fragile markets, and most importantly, its mission to provide accessible and reliable financial services in Sudan, a country facing a severe humanitarian and economic crisis. This partnership marks Proparco’s first financing operation in Sudan.

Expanding financial inclusion in a challenging environment

Sudan faces significant barriers to financial inclusion, exacerbated by the ongoing political and economic instability. Limited access to banking services, persistent cash shortages and interruptions to telecommunications and payment systems have made everyday financial transactions increasingly difficult for individuals and businesses.

In this challenging environment, digital financial services have become essential to supporting livelihoods, maintaining economic activity, and facilitating the delivery of humanitarian assistance.

Founded in 2022, Cashi is a fintech company working to address these challenges by developing an accessible digital payment ecosystem. Building on the experience of establishing alsoug.com, which became Sudan’s leading online marketplace, Cashi was created to overcome the limitations of traditional payment infrastructure and enable individuals and businesses to participate more fully in the digital economy, particularly in underserved areas.

Supporting African innovation in fragile contexts

Through this €600,000 financing, Proparco aims to support the development of an African fintech providing necessary financial services in one of the continent’s most challenging operating environments.

The investment is part of Proparco’s commitment to supporting innovative African businesses that address critical development needs, particularly in fragile and conflict-affected countries.
By strengthening Cashi’s capacity to deliver accessible digital payment solutions, the financing is expected to contribute to greater financial inclusion, support local entrepreneurship and facilitate financial transactions for underserved communities.

This operation also represents an important milestone as it marks Proparco’s first financing in Sudan and demonstrating its willingness to support private sector initiatives in fragile contexts where access to financing remains particularly constrained.

Building resilient digital payment infrastructure

Cashi provides digital payment solutions that enable individuals and businesses to deposit and withdraw cash, pay bills and transfer money through a network of local merchants, reducing reliance on traditional banking infrastructure.

Its digital wallet, MyCashi, has reached 2.2 million registered users, with particularly strong adoption among young people. To overcome connectivity challenges, Cashi has also developed USSD, SMS, offline card, and other non-app-based solutions, designed to facilitate financial transactions and the distribution of humanitarian assistance in areas affected by network disruptions.

Together, these solutions help maintain access to essential financial services, particularly for underserved and displaced populations.

In fragile contexts such as Sudan, access to reliable financial services is not only a driver of economic development, but also an essential means of supporting livelihoods and strengthening resilience. Through this financing, Proparco is proud to support Cashi, an innovative African company developing practical solutions to address critical needs on the ground. This first operation in Sudan reflects our commitment to supporting entrepreneurship and financial inclusion, including in the most challenging environments.

Guillaume Barberousse

  • Global Head of Investment at Proparco

In Sudan today, being able to send, receive or withdraw money can decide how a family gets through the month, or whether a small shop stays open. When the banks were unavailable during the war, Cashi stayed open and available. We built it to keep working when cash runs short and the network drops. Today, millions of consumers and merchants use Cashi. Millions more across Sudan still have no bank account and no ATM nearby. Where you live should not decide whether you can get paid, pay a bill or send money home. They are the people we are building for.

Nina Saeed

  • CEO of Cashi