Earlier today, two businesses released a statement announcing the acquisition of Vella Finance through One Credit Limited, the company’s parent.
The purchase, according to the announcement, represents a major advancement in Carbon’s goal of providing small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) with cutting-edge, easily accessible financial services that take use of the most recent developments in artificial intelligence. Following the purchase, Gabriel Ajenifuja, co-founder and chief technology officer of Vella Finance, announced that the firm will move its business clients to Carbon Business and provide individual clients the choice to upgrade to business accounts.Commenting on the deal, co-founder of Carbon, Chijioke Dozie, said: “Carbon spearheaded the consumer finance revolution in Nigeria in 2016. Our goal was to give consumers unprecedented access to finance from their mobile devices. Since then we have provided some loans to SMEs but not in a manner that meets our standards or the customers’ expectations.
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“We have known the Vella Finance team for some time and admired their innovation and understanding of the market needs. We saw in them the same innovative and pioneering spirit that ignited Carbon. They had built an SME platform that we believe is unrivaled in the market and given our aspirations, the deal was a no-brainer.”
On his part, Carbon’s co-founder and CEO, Ngozi Dozie, emphasizes the company’s commitment to not just leveraging AI internally but also sharing these insights broadly.
The -founder and CEO of Vella Finance, Mark Afolabi, also has these to say about the acquisition:
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“This is exciting news for businesses and we are thrilled to join forces with Carbon. These are trying times for businesses in Nigeria and by joining forces, we can provide businesses with a platform that provides AI-driven insights into their transactions, low-cost accessible loans, and the power of AI models built into the platform to help with any business challenge.”
For Vella Finance, the ownership change will not change its commitment to customers. The startup said the acquisition will allow it to reach more customers, develop cutting-edge financial products, and provide a more secure banking experience.
Carbon, on the other hand, is looking to leverage Vella Finance’s AI-powered transaction analysis that helps business customers gain actionable insights based on their transactions.
