Washington, July 10, 2024 — To boost access to affordable remittances and support livelihoods and business activity in countries across Africa, IFC today announced a financing package for TerraPay, an Africa-focused digital payments provider.
IFC arranged a $75 million financing package for TerraPay, which includes a $30 million loan from IFC's own account, a B Loan of $15 million provided by asset manager ILX under IFC's B Loan Program, and a combined parallel loan of $30 million from development finance institutions OP Finnfund Global Impact Fund I and BIO.
The financing will help TerraPay expand its operations by partnering with more global money transfer operators and by increasing the volume of transfers it processes across Africa. The expansion will help reduce the costs, enhance speed, and simplify international remittance transfers.
In Africa, TerraPay customers can send money from 41 countries and receive from 40. African customers can not only send and receive funds within Africa, but also to and from markets across Europe and Asia.
"Our association with IFC goes back a long way and as we continue our journey towards growth, their support continues to be invaluable. This has fueled our mission, enabling us to strengthen our infrastructure, expand our network and invest deeply in technology and solutions that solve real-world problems," said Ambar Sur, Founder and CEO for TerraPay. "As we deepen our partnership, I look forward to furthering our common vision to boost financial inclusion and accessibility, empowering families, individuals, and businesses across the African continent leveraging our vast global payments network."
"At IFC, we are committed to creating opportunities for inclusive growth in Africa, including by leveraging digital solutions to bridge financial gaps and improve livelihoods," said Aliou Maiga, IFC's Regional Industry Director for the Financial Institutions Group for Africa. "Through this partnership, we aim to support a robust digital payment infrastructure that empowers individuals and small businesses."
TerraPay streamlines the remittance process by integrating and connecting major markets and money transfer operators such as Western Union, MoneyGram, and Ria, supporting household incomes, small businesses, and contributing to overall economic development.
In 2019, IFC invested $8 million as part of the Series A funding round for TerraPay. The investment announced today aligns with the World Bank Group' goal of achieving universal access to financial services, which is crucial for improving the lives of disadvantaged and vulnerable populations.
About IFC
IFC — a member of the World Bank Group — is the largest global development institution focused on the private sector in emerging markets. We work in more than 100 countries, using our capital, expertise, and influence to create markets and opportunities in developing countries. In fiscal year 2023, IFC committed a record $43.7 billion to private companies and financial institutions in developing countries, leveraging the power of the private sector to end extreme poverty and boost shared prosperity as economies grapple with the impacts of global compounding crises. For more information, visit www.ifc.org.
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About TerraPay
TerraPay simplifies the movement of money everywhere – providing a single connection to the most expansive cross-border payments network regulated in 31 global markets and enabling payments to 144+ receive countries, 210+ send countries, 7.5Bn+ bank accounts and 2.1Bn+ mobile wallets. TerraPay is on a mission to connect a borderless financial world, making moving money everywhere instant, reliable, transparent and fully compliant. TerraPay pushes the boundaries for global businesses – ranging from banks, fintechs and money-transfer operators to travel businesses, creator economy platforms and e-commerce marketplaces – while driving financial inclusion in even the most inaccessible markets. Founded in 2014, TerraPay is headquartered in London, with global offices in Bangalore, Dubai, Miami, Bogota, Dar es Salaam, Kampala, Hague, Dakar, Joburg, Nairobi, Milan, Singapore and is expanding rapidly, having received funding from leading investors, including the IFC (the World Bank), Prime Ventures, Partech Africa and Visa. For more information, visit www.terrapay.com
About ILX
ILX Fund is an Amsterdam-based asset manager specializing in global development finance co-investment strategies. The fund provides institutional investors access to investment opportunities in the development finance asset class. ILX Fund is a solution that bridges the gap between the institutional investors seeking to achieve a higher sustainability profile of their investments in emerging markets, and the need to mobilize private sector finance towards the SDGs and climate finance projects. The fund's investment strategy is underpinned by strong partnerships with global Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs) and Development Finance Institutions (DFIs), which centers around SDG-aligned co-investments, particularly within the realm of Climate Finance. For more information, visit www.ilxfund.com.
About OP Finnfund Global Impact Fund I
OP Finnfund Global Impact Fund I is the first global emerging markets impact fund in Finland. The fund targets significant positive impacts in addition to financial return. The first two rounds of funding have raised a total of EUR 135 million. OP Asset Management Ltd, part of OP Financial Group, one of the largest banking groups in Finland, acts as a portfolio manager for the fund and OP Fund Management Company Ltd acts as an alternative investment fund manager of the fund. Finnfund, a Finnish development financier and impact investor acts as an anchor investor and advisor to the fund. For more information, visit
www.finnfund.com.
About BIO
The mission of the Belgian Investment Company for Developing Countries (BIO) is to promote the establishment of a strong private sector in developing and emerging countries, to enable them to access growth and sustainable development, within the framework of the Sustainable Development Goals. BIO was created in 2001 with the Belgian Federal State as sole shareholder. Its ultimate goal is to help strengthen the private sector in developing countries. For more information, visit www.bio-invest.be.
