In a conversation with Afridigest, the CEO of Kredete, a fast-rising fintech startup focused on transforming credit access for Africans and the diaspora, shared the company’s founding vision, early challenges, and roadmap for scale.
From confronting fragmented data in Nigeria to acquiring regulatory licenses in the U.S., Kredete’s story reflects both resilience and ambition.
The Original Vision:
Kredete’s journey began with a bold idea: help Africans build creditworthiness locally and carry that reputation abroad.
The CEO recalled how, in the U.S., one social security number anchors an individual’s financial identity, but in Nigeria, multiple identifiers (such as BVN and NIN) created loopholes and data gaps.
This fragmentation made it difficult to enforce repayments and created distrust in credit systems. “How do you become credit-conscious if there are not protections to guide your credit data?” the CEO asked.
Kredete’s early pitch to banks was simple yet profound: allow remittances and payments to double as credit-building tools.
Instead of being a mere plug-and-play remittance company, Kredete positioned itself as an infrastructure company—integrating deeply with banks and credit divisions to transform payments into credit history.
Narrowing the Focus: From Diaspora Dreams to Day One in the West
At first, the vision was to help Africans establish credit history before migrating abroad. But after studying the complexities of African data systems and integrations, the company pivoted.
“Why don’t we start helping them from day one when they get to the West?” the CEO explained.
That realization shifted the company’s focus toward African diasporans, where integration with U.S. and Canadian credit bureaus (Equifax, TransUnion, and Experian) allowed for quicker traction.
Kredete discovered that the most powerful driver of credit history isn’t the credit line itself, but on-time payments—a factor that makes up 35% of credit scores.
By introducing secured credit lines, rent reporting, and payment-linked products, Kredete began building trust and traction with users seeking credit inclusion abroad.
Finding Product-Market Fit
Early traction came once the company repositioned as a compliance-heavy, infrastructure-first platform. The CEO described the journey as moving from “minus one to zero” in Africa to “zero to one” in the West.
The breakthrough moment came with licensing across all 50 U.S. states and in Canada, enabling full compliance with federal regulations, FedNow, and FedWire systems.
These partnerships unlocked access to core banking infrastructure that is typically out of reach for early fintechs.
That credibility, paired with an inclusive vision, positioned Kredete as a company worthy of a $20 million investment check—and now scaling toward $100 million ARR and beyond.
Scaling the Impact: Beyond African Immigrants
While the company’s foundation is rooted in serving African immigrants, the vision is expanding. The CEO is asking bigger questions:
How can Kredete scale credit access to Black Americans and other underserved demographics?
How do they ensure inclusion for anyone who wants to build credit history, not just those tied to remittance corridors?
How can state-by-state partnerships with community banks extend services even to less prominent states like Arkansas, Louisiana, and Kentucky, not just big hubs like New York or Texas?
These questions, the CEO admits, are what “keep me up at night.”
Kredete is no longer just a scrappy startup—it’s a company at scale, with infrastructure, licensing, and compliance baked into its DNA. The next chapter will likely involve:
Product launches like e-Credit and Rent-a-CC, turning everyday payments into credit-building opportunities.
Deeper integrations with local banks and credit bureaus across continents.
Expansion of demographic focus, from African immigrants to global underserved communities.
At its core, Kredete is chasing one mission: to build an inclusive credit ecosystem at scale.
As the CEO summed it up:
“We always thought of ourselves as an infrastructure company. The biggest challenge is not just touching lives—it’s touching lives at scale.”
Overview of Kredete
Kredete is a financial technology company focused on credit inclusion for Africans, diasporans, and underserved populations globally.
By transforming remittances, rent, and everyday payments into tools for building credit history, Kredete is creating pathways for millions to access financial services.
With licenses across the U.S. and Canada, and integrations with major credit bureaus, the company is building an infrastructure-first approach to global credit access.
