Nigerian fintech startup Moni Africa has officially rebranded as Rank, marking a major milestone in its mission to empower small businesses and entrepreneurs across Africa. Alongside the rebrand, the YC-backed startup announced the acquisition of AjoMoney, a digital group-savings platform, and Zazzau Microfinance Bank, which will now operate as Rank Microfinance Bank.

This strategic evolution underscores Rank’s goal to deepen access to financial services, enhance community-powered lending, and provide comprehensive digital banking products including deposits, credit, and treasury-backed savings.

Empowering Africa’s Small Businesses Through Community Finance

Founded in August 2021 by Femi Iromini and Adedapo Sobayo, Moni Africa started with a simple but powerful idea, to enable mobile money agents and small businesses to access affordable working capital.

The fintech leveraged a referral-and-trust-based lending model, tapping into community networks such as traders’ associations and cooperatives to ensure accountability and high repayment rates.

Through this approach, Rank (formerly Moni) disbursed ₦16 billion in loans during a pilot phase involving 10,000 users, generating returns of 23% backed by treasury bills and money market instruments.

“We got trust from them (the mobile agents). We provided loans to them at a critical time, December, with all the money needed around it. The group paid back on time. That was the turning point for us,” said Femi Iromini, co-founder of Rank.

Expanding Horizons: Rank Microfinance Bank and AjoMoney Integration

With the acquisition of AjoMoney and Zazzau Microfinance Bank, Rank is positioning itself as a hybrid fintech-bank, blending traditional group savings systems like Ajo, Esusu, and Adashe with modern digital banking infrastructure.

This integration allows Rank to:

• Offer licensed banking services through Rank Microfinance Bank.
• Provide digital group savings and investment tools via AjoMoney.
• Expand credit access and introduce treasury-backed wealth solutions.

The fintech is also developing a wealth advisory ecosystem, combining expert insights with AI-driven digital tools to guide users in managing and growing their financial portfolios.

Backed by Top Investors to Drive Financial Inclusion

Rank has raised $4 million in funding from notable investors including Y Combinator, 186 Ventures, Magic Fund, Predictive VC, and Uncovered Fund. The company has maintained a steady 20% month-on-month growth between 2021 and 2023, demonstrating strong market demand for its community-based financial model.

Rank’s expansion is part of a broader effort to transform access to finance for over 500 million underbanked Africans, particularly merchants, mobile money agents, and small enterprises across Nigeria, Benin Republic, and Guinea.

“Creating Moni wasn’t really like an opportunity we saw. It was an opportunity we stumbled on and we tried our best to make something out of it,” Iromini told Technext in an earlier interview.

Building Africa’s Wealth Circles of the Future

By combining licensed banking infrastructure with digitised trust networks, Rank is redefining how communities save, lend, and build wealth. The rebrand and acquisitions mark a new chapter in the company’s journey to become Africa’s most trusted digital community bank.

As Rank, the company continues to empower African entrepreneurs, democratise access to credit, and foster financial inclusion, ensuring that small businesses remain the backbone of Africa’s digital economy.