Bfree Secures $2.95 Million to Scale Ethical Debt Collection Across Africa

The Nigeria-based debt collection startup Bfree recently closed a $2.95 million funding round to boost its expansion across Africa. The round was led by Capria Ventures, with participation from Angaza Capital, GreenHouse Capital, Launch Africa, Modus Africa, Axian CVC, and angel investors.

This latest investment brings Bfree’s total funding to date to $6.5 million. Last year, the startup raised an undisclosed bridge round of $1.1 million.

Co-founded in 2020 by Julian Flosbach, Chukwudi Enyi, and Moses Nmor, Bfree aims to transform debt collection through automation and ethical practices. The founders were compelled to act after seeing the adverse impacts of aggressive tactics used by predatory lenders.

Bfree now focuses on partnering with major banks in Ghana, Kenya, and Nigeria. Banks make up 70% of the startup’s revenues thanks to their sizable loan portfolios. To date, Bfree has recovered 12.5% of over $400 million in outstanding debt for clients.

The new capital will allow Bfree to continue scaling across Africa and developing new offerings like secondary debt markets. These markets enable banks to sell non-performing loans to third-party investors, thereby offloading risk.

Bfree applies its proprietary algorithms to accurately value distressed assets for sale. The startup also provides banks with analytics and insights into secondary markets.

Capria Ventures‘ managing partner Susana García-Robles noted Bfree’s potential to drive innovation in African financial services through applied generative AI. As Bfree expands, its automation capabilities will enable efficient and ethical credit management across the continent.