Funding news · Sep 3, 2026
Nomba secures $3M debt from CardinalStone Finance
Nomba Raises $3M in Debt Financing
Nomba, the Lagos-based Nigerian fintech, has raised $3 million in debt financing led by CardinalStone Finance. The financing was dated September 3, 2026.
Round Details
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Round type | Debt |
| Amount | $3,000,000 |
| Currency | USD |
| Date | September 3, 2026 |
| Lead investor | CardinalStone Finance |
| Investors | CardinalStone Finance |
CardinalStone Finance is the sole named investor and lead on the facility.
What Nomba Does
Nomba is a Lagos-based Nigerian fintech founded in 2017, originally as Kudi.AI, by Yinka Adewale and Pelumi Aboluwarin. The company provides business banking and payment infrastructure for African businesses.
Its product set includes:
- Collections — via POS terminals, cards and mobile money.
- Multi-currency accounts — for business banking needs.
- Cross-border payment rails — supporting international payment flows for African businesses.
Scale and Prior Backing
Nomba is backed by Y Combinator. In 2023, the company raised a $30 million pre-Series B at a valuation above $150 million.
Today, Nomba processes over $480 million in monthly cross-border payments. The company uses the Democratic Republic of Congo as its base for settling Africa-Asia trade.
Why It Matters
Debt financing of this type is typically used to support working capital and the settlement flows that underpin payment infrastructure businesses. For Nomba, the facility arrives alongside a substantial existing cross-border payments volume — more than $480 million monthly — and a stated focus on Africa-Asia trade settlement routed through the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Nomba's positioning spans domestic collections infrastructure and cross-border rails, giving African businesses a combined banking and payments stack. The company's history — founded in 2017, rebranded from Kudi.AI, backed by Y Combinator, and scaled through a $30 million pre-Series B in 2023 — places it among the more established fintech infrastructure players serving African markets.
Context
This $3 million debt round, led by CardinalStone Finance, adds to Nomba's prior equity funding history. The company continues to operate from Lagos while using the Democratic Republic of Congo as its settlement base for Africa-Asia trade corridors.