Nigeria’s VerifyMe Secures Series A Funding From Consonance To Boost Its KYC Product
VerifyMe, a Nigerian ID verification and Know-Your-Client startup that is based in Lagos, has roped in Series A funding of an undisclosed amount from Lagos-based investment firm, Consonance Investment Managers.
Founded in 2017 by Esigie Aguele and Olutunji Oluwole, VerifyMe has built a platform that enables seamless verification in real-time.
VerifyMe goes about this by leveraging data from the Nigerian Identity Management Commission, Central Bank of Nigeria, Bank Verification Number, and Federal Road Safety Commission driver’s licenses.
In a statement dated 17 January, Consonance Investment Managers stated that the investment will be used to fund its strategic partnerships and bring new digital ID verification products to market.
“Authenticated identity is a critical foundation of digital commerce and financial services; it’s the cornerstone of trust which is essential for collaboration in economies,” said Mobolaji Adeoye, Managing Partner at Consonance Investment Managers.
“We believe that Tunji, Esigie and the VerifyMe team are doing work that is pivotal to meeting Nigeria’s financial and digital inclusion goals. We are proud to support their vision and journey.”
It is also understood that VerifyMe is looking at expanding adoption across Nigeria and grow revenue twenty-fold over the next three years.
“We are delighted to partner with Consonance Investment Managers in our mission to build Africa’s KYC infrastructure. Digital services are a key catalyst for Africa’s economic growth and financial inclusion, but they can only be unlocked if there’s a mechanism to verify identity at scale,” said Aguele, who also functions as CEO of the startup.
“We strive to transform the digital landscape by providing businesses with KYC-as-a-service tools to verify their client identities.”
The co-founder talked up digital services as a key catalyst for Africa’s economic growth and financial inclusion while maintaining that these can only be unlocked if there’s a mechanism to verify identity at scale.
