Talk360, the international calling app that connects with reliable and affordable calls to any landline or mobile phone, has successfully raised $1.4 million in a Pre-Series A funding round.
This round was led by its long-standing investor, Havaic. This capital injection will drive the company’s goal of connecting seven million people by 2025 while strengthening its journey towards long-term profitability.
“We’re incredibly proud of Talk360’s growth. Over the past two years, we’ve gone from connecting 2.3 million users to4 million in 2023. This funding will help us continue our mission of connecting African migrant communities with their families back home,” says Hans Osnabrugge, co-founder and CEO of Talk360.
Talk360 is a leading South African and Dutch calling app that enables affordable international calls, requiring only the initiator to have the app and internet connectivity to reach any number globally. The business has garnered strong backing from investors. In 2022, Talk360 raised $7 million through two seed funding rounds, attracting investments from African venture capitalists and fintech angels across Europe and South Africa, including executives from Adyen and Mollie, as well as the founders of Tyme Bank.
After the raises, Talk360 sought to not only expand its user base among the African diaspora in the UK, US, and South Africa but also to explore the potential of establishing the first payment aggregator designed to streamline the payment experience across the fragmented African market and solve the challenge of failed payment attempts for both merchants and consumers.
“This payment platform has been exclusively used in-house to establish a strong foundation. The results have been exceptional, with an average 25% increase in payment conversion. We are strongly considering opening the platform to external merchants before Christmas 2024,” says Hans Osnabrugge, co-founder and CEO at Talk360.
The recent capital injection was based on the same $30 million+ valuation the company received in 2022 and amounted to $1 million from Havaic and an additional $400,000 from other investors. It comes at a time when the global venture capital landscape faces unprecedented challenges. “The additional funding will enable us to deliver on our next phase of growth to reach seven million people and achieve profitability across our global operations,” states Osnabrugge.
With the additional funds in place, Talk360 plans to localise into more African languages and set up more local and global partnerships with remittance companies, retailers, and brands.
“A better understanding of our audiences will also see the upcoming releases supporting languages such as Amharic and Portuguese. This talks to the significant demand of our Ethiopian customers and highlights our willingness to localise our solution where needed,” says Dean Hiine, co-founder and MD Africa at Talk360. “Talk360 has built trust within underserved communities by offering a solution that resonates with their unique needs. This new funding will help the business capitalise on that trust to create even more tailored solutions that deliver value at a local level.”
Havaic’s continued support of Talk360, despite the challenging economic conditions, underscores their strong confidence in the company’s future. “Talk360’s ability to navigate and succeed in challenging economic conditions speaks to the strength of its business model and clear vision. We are confident this latest round of funding will empower them to deepen their impact, especially in underserved communities across Africa,” says Ian Lessem, Managing Partner at Havaic.
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