DFS Lab and Stellar Development Foundation Launch Fund for Transformative Digital Payments in Africa
High Potential Founders and StartUps Invited to Apply
DFS Lab has announced the launch of the DFS Lab Stellar Africa Fund I (the “Fund”) to back high-potential builders and teams in Africa who aim to transform the digital payments landscape and beyond by building on the Stellar network. The Fund is made possible through an investment from the Stellar Development Foundation.
The Fund brings together DFS Lab’s years of supporting Africa’s best digital commerce founders with the open-source Stellar network, optimized for payments and asset issuance. Portfolio founders selected for investment by the Fund will have access to DFS Lab’s team and community as well as mentors from the Stellar Development Foundation and Stellar ecosystem companies.
The new Fund builds on previous blockchain bootcamp collaborations between DFS Lab and the Stellar Development Foundation which supported developers and startups building on the open-source Stellar network in Africa, with wide-ranging product examples. Daniel Casanas, Head of Investments at the Stellar Development Foundation said, ‘‘We’ve seen developers build solutions on Stellar that address local needs, ranging from wallet apps and remittance services to digital identity solutions. We’ve worked with growing teams across Africa, and we’re excited to be expanding our relationship with DFS Lab to support more African founders.”
“At DFS Lab, we have always taken a pragmatic approach when it comes to decentralized finance in Africa. It is hard to deny the potential that decentralized solutions can offer in a continent where finance is oftentimes bogged down by inefficiency, opacity, and lack of interoperability,” says Joseph Benson, Partner at DFS Lab. “We’ve now seen a rush of talent and capital enter into this space, helping to refine the potential use cases for technologies like blockchain and crypto in Africa. Undoubtedly, some approaches will falter as hype gives way to reality, but those who break through and find traction may find themselves building foundational platforms that can underpin the future of digital transactions on the continent. We believe that’s an opportunity well worth exploring.”
Speaking on what founders can look forward to from the Fund, Stephen Deng, Partner at DFS Lab summarized that, “We’ll back pre-seed and seed teams building for Africa. We’re open to various use cases, but will be especially interested in those solving for fiat-crypto ramps and those building cross-border payments for the continent. We’ll fund both teams that are familiar with the Stellar platform alongside those who want to integrate Stellar into their product roadmaps for the first time. We plan on initial investments of up to $100,000, with further follow-on investments possible as teams grow.”
If you’re building something we should know about, please apply at this link. Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis.
About Stellar
Stellar is a decentralized, fast, scalable, and uniquely sustainable network for financial products and services. It is both a cross-currency transaction system and a platform for digital asset issuance, designed to connect the world’s financial infrastructure. Financial institutions worldwide issue assets and settle payments on the Stellar network, which has grown to over 7 million accounts. For more information, visit stellar.org.
About the Stellar Development Foundation
The Stellar Development Foundation (SDF) is a non-profit organization that supports the development and growth of Stellar, an open-source network that connects the world’s financial infrastructure. Founded in 2014, the Foundation helps maintain Stellar’s codebase, supports the technical and business communities building on the network, and serves as a voice to regulators and institutions. The Foundation seeks to create equitable access to the global financial system, using the Stellar network to unlock the world’s economic potential through blockchain technology. For more information, visit stellar.org/foundation.