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Capitis Thrift & Credit Cooperative Society Limited (Capitis), a savings and loans union based in Abuja, Nigeria, today, announced that it has raised approximately N361 million in a Series A funding.

According to the transaction summary provided at a media briefing hosted by Capitis on Wednesday in Abuja, the fund raising had targeted N500 million. This means the private debt issuance, in the local currency and maturing in 2024, was 73 per cent successful.

The company said in a statement made available to Financial Nigeria that Capitis is set to revolutionise the contributory credit union segment of the African financial services sector to expand access to credit for micro, small and medium scale enterprises (MSMEs) and improve financial inclusion on the continent, beginning from Nigeria. The statement further said Capitis aims to become a market leader within five years by investing in technology and leveraging existing market experience and competences.

“Considering the economic impact of COVID-19 and the uncertainties the pandemic is still causing in the business, finance and investment sectors, we view the outcome of our fund-raising efforts as very positive,” said Peter Adejoh, Executive Chairman/CEO, Capitis. “We have already started to see the idea of Capitis, as a platform for mobilising savings and providing loans to MSMEs, making impacts and achieving its early targets. This series A funding will support our efforts to scale up quickly and expand financial accesses.”

The Enhancing Financial Innovation & Access (EFInA) 2020 survey report shows 27 per cent of Nigeria's 106 million adults have savings accounts and only 2 per cent have access to loans with a bank. The report says Nigerians who lost their employments during the pandemic are turning to entrepreneurship. The data indicates demand for financing for young businesses and the horde of informal businesses in the country.

Capitis was founded in 2019. In an exclusive interview Mr. Adejoh granted Financial Nigeria is May 2021, he said Capitis had grown by over 800 per cent in less than two years as of December 2020 financial year end, offering bespoke collaborative financial services tailored towards meeting the funding needs of the members of the credit union. He said the company is working to deliver sustained profitability to members and shareholders of the company.

The company said it has significant growth potentials and expects to expand its products and operations beyond Abuja into new geographies. One of the company’s products, CAPSAL Express Loan, requires no collateral or guarantor and is accessible within six hours.

“In October 2020, Capitis became the first privately-owned, non-bank financial platform to be formally created as an element on the Integrated Personnel & Payroll Information System (IPPIS) platform of the federal government with a mandate of providing salary loans to public sector workers,” Mr. Adejoh told Financial Nigeria. “Leveraging technology, and working with our partner banks, we are providing lending, cash management, payments, and leasing solutions to a well-diversified customer base.”