“Can a Nigerian capital-markets house become a globally connected African financial services powerhouse spanning trading, lending, wealth and cross-border payments?”
Zedcrest was founded in 2013 as a fixed-income trading firm in Lagos and grew into a diversified African financial services group spanning securities trading, investment management, investment banking, proprietary investments and consumer/SME lending (Zedvance). In 2025 Zedvance shifted 100% of its active loan portfolio to SMEs and ecosystem enablers, signalling a strategic focus on mid-market business finance. In 2026 the group completed its acquisition of UK-founded cross-border payments platform Leatherback, moving Zedcrest from a Nigeria-centric capital-markets house toward a globally connected fintech ecosystem.
Zedcrest Group processes payments through Leatherback (in-house).
Zedcrest Group's lending and capital products are provided by Zedvance Finance Limited (in-house).
Zedcrest Group uses Leatherback (in-house) for FX and cross-border payouts.
Zedcrest Group's investing and wealth products are powered by Zedcrest Wealth (in-house).
The Embedded Finance Index 2026 maps 4 layers in Zedcrest Group's stack: Payments / PSP (Leatherback (in-house)); Lending (Zedvance Finance Limited (in-house), Zedvance personal loans, Zedvance business loans, Zedvance SME liquidity solutions and 2 others); FX & payouts (Leatherback (in-house)); Investing (Zedcrest Wealth (in-house)).
Zedcrest Group is founded in 2013 and headquartered in Lagos, Nigeria.
Zedcrest Group's acquisitions include Leatherback (2026).
Get a read on where your own stack stands against Zedcrest Group 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.