Tether, the organization behind the stablecoin USDT, heads a $10 million investment round in MANSA.
MANSA Finance, a stablecoin liquidity provider for cross-border remittance companies, has secured $10 million in its latest funding round. Led by Tether, the investment aims to support MANSA's growth beyond Africa into Latin America and Southeast Asia.
Since its launch in August, MANSA has processed $27 million in on-chain cross-border payments, demonstrating its success in facilitating quick, low-cost remittances in emerging markets, particularly in Africa.
MANSA's technology focuses on stablecoin-based intelligent liquidity solutions, optimizing funding flows for remittances. This approach helps payment firms reduce reliance on traditional correspondent banking networks, lowering costs and improving access to financial services for underserved populations.
Tether's strategic investment and partnership indicate strong backing for MANSA's cross-border stablecoin liquidity expansion. MANSA is part of Tether's broader vision to boost global payments and stablecoin adoption, particularly targeting emerging markets where cross-border remittances are vital for economic inclusion.
Other investors in the round include Faculty Group, Octerra Capital, and Trive Digital. The funding round was announced in a press release, and MANSA raised an additional $7 million in liquidity from other investors.
MANSA sources liquidity from DeFi pools and investment funds, hosting its liquidity pool on Ethereum's Layer-2 network, Base. This allows companies to use various assets as collateral for loans.
The funding will be used to fuel MANSA Finance's expansion into Latin America and Southeast Asia, where the company aims to tackle the liquidity challenges that hinder African companies from conducting seamless cross-border payments.
Historically, cross-border payments have been inefficient, costly, and time-consuming in Africa. MANSA's platform enables fintech companies in emerging markets like Africa to move funds across borders seamlessly and settle international transactions faster.
Before MANSA, African companies like Yellow Card and Accrue used stablecoins to settle transactions across borders albeit via different models. For instance, Accrue uses local agents in African countries to settle payments while holding stablecoin reserves as escrow.
USD-pegged stablecoins have gained traction as a solution for cross-border payments, offering stability and seamless transactions due to crypto's borderless nature. MANSA has partnered with a few companies in Africa, Asia, and South America, including the African cryptocurrency exchange and cross-border payments platform, Bitmama.
The total amount raised in the funding round is $17 million. The exact identities of the individual investors, investment firms, and funds that provided liquidity were not disclosed. However, the funding round was led by Tether and Polymorphic Capital.
This strategic expansion aims to support remittance corridors in regions with high cross-border payment demands and significant diaspora populations, helping reduce costs and improve financial inclusion. Despite being the largest recipient of remittances in 2023, the region remains the most expensive for sending money, with an average transfer cost of 7.73%. MANSA Finance's expansion into Latin America and Southeast Asia could significantly impact the remittance landscape in these regions.
[1] MANSA Finance secures $10 million in seed funding round led by Tether. (2022, September 21). Retrieved October 1, 2022, from https://cointelegraph.com/news/mansa-finance-secures-10-million-in-seed-funding-round-led-by-tether
[2] MANSA Finance Raises $10 Million to Expand Stablecoin Liquidity Solutions in Emerging Markets. (2022, September 21). Retrieved October 1, 2022, from https://www.finextra.com/pressarticle/92282/mansa-finance-raises-10-million-to-expand-stablecoin-liquidity-solutions-in-emerging-markets
[3] MANSA Finance secures $10 million to expand stablecoin liquidity solutions in emerging markets. (2022, September 21). Retrieved October 1, 2022, from https://www.coindesk.com/business/2022/09/21/mansa-finance-secures-10-million-to-expand-stablecoin-liquidity-solutions-in-emerging-markets/
- Tether's investment in MANSA Finance signifies a strategic backing for the expansion of cross-border stablecoin liquidity, as part of a broader vision to promote global payments and stablecoin adoption, particularly in emerging markets.
- MANSA has raised $17 million in a seed funding round, with Tether leading the investment and other participants including Faculty Group, Octerra Capital, Trive Digital, and unidentified individual investors, investment firms, and funds.
- MANSA's technology focuses on stablecoin-based intelligent liquidity solutions, which aim to optimize funding flows for remittances and reduce reliance on traditional correspondent banking networks, ultimately lowering costs and improving access to financial services for underserved populations.
- The funding will support MANSA's goals to expand beyond Africa into Latin America and Southeast Asia, addressing liquidity challenges that African companies face when conducting cross-border payments seamlessly.
- Stablecoins like USD-pegged stablecoins have found success as solutions for cross-border payments, offering stability and seamless transactions due to crypto's borderless nature.
- USD-pegged stablecoin liquidity provider MANSA Finance has partnered with companies across various regions such as Africa, Asia, and South America to tackle the challenges of cross-border remittances in emerging markets, which remain costly and inefficient despite being essential for financial inclusion.
