Nestcoin, a company building, operating, and investing in web3 applications, has raised $6.45 million in pre-seed funding. This new investment will enable the company to expand its global operations and invest in building products that will help accelerate crypto adoption and financial freedom for people in frontier markets.
Despite the promises of Web 2.0, economic prosperity and access to opportunities have primarily been concentrated in developed markets.
However, history shows that new solutions often take off where the need is strongest. For example, this is evident in how mobile technology successfully leapfrogged Africa’s telecommunications deficit and unlocked economic opportunities.
Between July 2020 and June 2021, Africa’s crypto market grew by $105.6 billion, a 1,200% increase, making it the third-fastest growing cryptocurrency economy in the world. Currently, peer to peer transactions and retail trading are two of the biggest drivers of crypto adoption on the continent, but more can be done.
Due to global disenfranchisement, inflation, weak governance, economic uncertainty, and high unemployment rates, frontier markets like Africa have stronger reasons than most to adopt crypto. By providing a gateway for young people in these regions to discover and participate in crypto, Nestcoin shows how this new future is possible.
The company was co-founded by Yele Bademosi and Taiwo Orilogbon in November 2021. Bademosi previously founded Bundle Africa. Under his leadership, the company grew to become one of Africa’s largest crypto social trading platforms.
Before that, he was the Director of Binance Labs in Africa, where he oversaw the incubation and development of top blockchain projects and startups. Orilogbon was Bundle Africa’s head of engineering and Chief Technology Officer, where he led the development of the technology infrastructure on which the platform’s ecosystem ran.
As proof of Nestcoin’s global mission and the potential that lies ahead, it is backed by a global group of investors, including Distributed Global, Alter Global, Serena Ventures, Alameda Research, A&T Capital, MSA Capital, 4DX Ventures, Raba Capital, Goat.vc, Old Fashion Research, CMT Digital, Electric Capital, Social Capital, CoinFund, gumi Cryptos Capital, DeFi Alliance, among others.
Yele Bademosi, Nestcoin’s CEO, says, “We are excited that our investors are backing this ambitious plan to create a future where billions of people in frontier markets have access to the opportunities that crypto brings. With this financing, we will continue to grow our diverse team, which already spans nine countries, expand our product offerings, and invest in more ventures aligned with our vision.”
Last year, the company launched Breach, its media arm created to advance crypto education globally, and Metaverse Magna (MVM), a crypto gaming guild that helps users earn up to $1,000 per month. Nestcoin also has several other products in the pipeline, designed to provide compelling use cases for crypto.
To further its mission, Nestcoin has also invested in Lazerpay, which allows businesses to accept payment in crypto, and collaborated with Davido and Bitsika to launch the E-choke social token, among others.
