“Can Kotani Pay become the dominant stablecoin-to-local-fiat infrastructure layer for Africa by providing the last-mile rails that connect Web3 applications to mobile money and banking channels across the continent?”
Founded in 2020, Kotani Pay began as a crypto-to-mobile-money rails provider focused on enabling African workers to receive cross-border remittances via stablecoins without needing internet (USSD-first). The company evolved into a full-stack Web3-to-fiat infrastructure layer — offering APIs, widgets, and stablecoin settlement solutions to dApps, blockchain fintechs, and gig platforms needing last-mile payouts across Africa. Its embedded finance angle is infrastructure-as-a-service: businesses integrate Kotani Pay's API to convert stablecoins (USDC, USDT, cUSD, USDGLO) to local fiat via mobile money networks (M-PESA, MTN Money, Airtel Money, Orange Money) and bank accounts.
Kotani Pay was founded by Felix Macharia, Samuel Kariuki, Brian Kimotho and Jonathan Morgan and is founded in 2020, headquartered in Nairobi, Kenya.
Kotani Pay has raised $4.1M in total (latest round: Pre-seed, 2023).
Get a read on where your own stack stands against Kotani Pay and the rest of its category — what they built versus bought, which providers they use, and where the gaps in your own strategy and competitive set actually are.