SC Ventures and Yabx Invest $10 Million in Furaha to Drive Education Financing in Africa

SC Ventures, the innovation and fintech arm of Standard Chartered, and Yabx Technologies, a Tech Mahindra Group company, have invested $10 million in Furaha, a lending platform that aims to improve financial access in Africa. Furaha focuses on providing affordable education financing across the continent.

SC Ventures contributed $7 million to the initiative, while Yabx provided technology expertise through its AI-driven lending platform.

Headquartered in Dubai, Furaha has operations in Uganda and plans to expand to other African markets soon.

“We are glad to partner with like-minded innovators like Yabx and Tech Mahindra who share our vision of increasing financial inclusion and access,” said Alex Manson, CEO of SC Ventures. “This partnership supports our work to rewire the DNA in banking.”

Yustus Aribariho and Ian Fernandes co-founded Furaha. The platform combines Yabx’s technology with SC Ventures’ banking expertise to create a system that offers loans for education, gender equity, and other socially responsible purposes. 

The company says its goal is to make loans affordable for families, especially those earning less than $500 a month, who often struggle to pay school fees.

“The transformative power of purpose-driven financing lies in its ability to bridge gaps in access and opportunity, particularly in regions like Africa,” said Mohit Joshi, CEO and managing director of Tech Mahindra. “This partnership aims to make financial solutions more inclusive and impactful.”

Furaha collaborates with local partners such as Opportunity Bank, SchPay, and MTN MoMo in Uganda to deliver its services. By creating a data-driven system for credit scoring, the company enables banks to offer affordable loans and helps families cope with financial situations better. 

“This partnership with SC Ventures is a big moment for Yabx,” said Rajat Dayal, CEO of Yabx. “We’re excited to work with Furaha as they positively impact education outcomes in Uganda and other African countries in the coming months.”

With over 600 million children under 18 in Africa, Furaha’s focus on education financing has the potential to improve opportunities for families and drive development across the continent.Recently, Tech Mahindra reported a 92.6% year-on-year (YoY) increase in net profit for the third quarter ended December 31, 2024, reaching $115 million. Total revenue for the quarter rose to $1.56 billion.