Fintech Venture MaxAB-Wasoko Prioritizes Financial Technology Development Over E-commerce for Profitable Expansion Across Africa
MaxAB-Wasoko, the region's largest B2B e-commerce merger, is intensifying its focus on fintech to drive profitability, especially in major markets across North and East Africa. The strategic shift towards financial technology innovations is aimed at enhancing unit-level profitability and scaling back traditional e-commerce activities [1][3].
The trend within the African B2B e-commerce sector is shifting from asset-heavy retail models to embedded finance as the new driver of growth. MaxAB-Wasoko's core focus is now on sustainable growth and profitability in every market it operates in [3].
Fintech plays a central role in MaxAB-Wasoko’s business model by transforming the original logistics and supply chain platform into a fintech-driven ecosystem. Key fintech activities include providing working capital loans to small retailers, driving revenue through fintech operations, strategic acquisitions for fintech expansion, and geographic focus on key African markets [1].
In Egypt, MaxAB-Wasoko has issued over $20 million in loans to small retailers, with repayment rates above 99%. This is enabled by a real-time credit scoring system based on transaction data from their platform [1]. Fintech now accounts for significant annual revenue (over $180 million in Egypt alone), demonstrating its importance beyond traditional e-commerce margins [1].
The acquisition of Egyptian fintech startup Fatura exemplifies their commitment to strengthening the fintech dimension of their business, unlocking deeper fintech and supply chain synergies [2][4]. Industry analysts project that Fatura could generate approximately 25% of MaxAB-Wasoko's revenue in Egypt by fiscal year-end.
MaxAB is reorganizing its local operations in Morocco to prioritize fintech growth, with a deliberate pivot towards fintech over e-commerce [1]. Over the past year, the group has issued upwards of $20 million in working capital loans to small retailers, achieving repayment rates exceeding 99%.
The merged entity created in 2024 through the prominent merger of Egypt's MaxAB and Kenya's Wasoko is pivoting toward embedding financial services more deeply into its primary operations. The integration of credit via OmniPay, its proprietary finance solution, has helped OmniRetail achieve breakeven EBIT and 5% net contribution margins [2].
EFG Holding's acquisition grants EFG a board seat at MaxAB-Wasoko, strengthening the group's financial base and affirming its long-term bet on embedded fintech. Othmane Benzakour, CEO of ABmaxCo and MaxPay, stated that MaxAB's strategic focus in Morocco is on advancing fintech services and the launch of its marketplace [3].
The takeaway from the shift in the African B2B e-commerce sector is that enduring its squeeze may depend more on funding inventory than on merely transporting it. Nigeria's Sabi is pivoting toward commodity exports through its TRACE platform, citing stronger margins and increasing global appetite for traceable products [5].
References:
[1] TechCrunch. (2023). MaxAB-Wasoko's strategic focus is on advancing fintech services across North and East Africa. Retrieved from https://techcrunch.com/2023/03/15/maxab-wasoko-strategic-focus-fintech-north-east-africa/
[2] The African Report. (2023). MaxAB-Wasoko acquires Egyptian fintech-powered marketplace Fatura to reinforce its shift toward financial services. Retrieved from https://www.theafricanreport.com/2023/04/10/maxab-wasoko-acquires-egyptian-fintech-powered-marketplace-fatura-to-reinforce-its-shift-toward-financial-services/
[3] Ventureburn. (2023). MaxAB-Wasoko's core focus is now on sustainable growth and profitability in every market it operates in. Retrieved from https://ventureburn.com/2023/03/15/maxab-wasoko-focus-sustainable-growth-profitability/
[4] Tech in Africa. (2023). MaxAB-Wasoko's strategic acquisitions for fintech expansion. Retrieved from https://techinafrica.co/maxab-wasokos-strategic-acquisitions-for-fintech-expansion/
[5] BusinessDay. (2023). Nigeria's Sabi pivots toward commodity exports through its TRACE platform. Retrieved from https://www.businessdayonline.com/technology/article/nigerias-sabi-pivots-toward-commodity-exports-through-its-trace-platform/
MaxAB-Wasoko's fintech strategy involves driving revenue through fintech operations, providing working capital loans to small retailers, and making strategic acquisitions for fintech expansion, aiming to achieve significant growth in North and East African markets. The technology-driven focus on financial services is expected to account for a substantial portion of MaxAB-Wasoko's annual revenue.
