Morocco’s Chari Raises Bridge Round
Morocco-based B2B eCommerce and fintech startup Chari has closed an undisclosed bridge round at a valuation of $100 million Chari announced the closing of a bridge round led by the Saudi-based venture capital fund Khwarizmi Ventures (KV), AirAngels (Airbnb Alumni Investors), and Afri Mobility, the venture capital arm of AKWA Group. This bridge round allows […]
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Morocco-based B2B eCommerce and fintech startup Chari has closed an undisclosed bridge round at a valuation of $100 million
Chari announced the closing of a bridge round led by the Saudi-based venture capital fund Khwarizmi Ventures (KV), AirAngels (Airbnb Alumni Investors), and Afri Mobility, the venture capital arm of AKWA Group.
This bridge round allows Khwarizmi Ventures, Air Angels and AKWA Group to join the existing cap table of Chari that includes Y Combinator, Rocket Internet, Global Founders Capital, Plug n Play, Orange Ventures, Harvard University Management Company, Village Capital, P1 Ventures, among others.
Founded by Sophia Alj and Ismael Belkhayat in January 2020, Chari recently graduated from the Y Combinator Summer 21 batch. In October 2021, Chari announced a $5M seed round and the acquisition of Karny.ma, a Moroccan ledger book with more than fifty thousand active users.
The recent acquisition of the credit book app Karny.ma gave Chari valuable data on the loans given by grocery stores to their customers. This allows Chari to credit-assess the unbanked shop owners and determine the most relevant payment terms presented to each.
“Chari will use the money of this bridge round to test the BNPL services with its existing customers. Upon successful results, Chari will acquire a local credit company to enable shop owners to lend money to their end-users, and further grow their business”, said Ismael Belkhayat, CEO, Chari and Cornell University Alumni.
Abdulaziz Al-Turki, Managing Partner, Khwarizmi Ventures, added, “Sophia and Ismael are visionary leaders that always make everyone around them think bigger every time they speak with them. We believe that under their leadership, Chari will help improve the lives of millions in Africa through simplified financial solutions. We are proud of their mission and delighted to join their adventure.”
Using Chari’s app, traditional convenience stores in Morocco and Tunisia can order all the products they need and receive them in less than 24 hours.
