Nigeria’s Nomba extends DRC payments corridor into Zambia

Nigerian business banking platform Nomba has extended its Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) payments corridor into Zambia, allowing Congolese businesses to pay Zambian suppliers instantly.

Founded by Yinka Adewale and Pelumi Aboluwarin in 2016, and formerly known as Kudi, Nomba has evolved over the years into a profitable, omnichannel payment service provider.

Across its DRC operations and Canadian-licensed money service business, Nomba – which raised a US$30 million pre-Series B funding round in 2023 – processes more than US$480 million a month.

Disrupt Africa reported last month the startup had secured a US$ 3 million debt facility to scale that figure to US$1 billion monthly, starting with DRC, where businesses on its platform collect and pay in both US dollars and Congolese francs (CDF).

Working with licensed local partners, Nomba now enables these businesses to make payments in CDF and USD to suppliers in Zambia, with funds landing instantly in bank accounts or mobile wallets.

The move targets one of the continent’s fastest-growing trade routes. Zambia’s goods exports to the DRC hit US$1.6 billion in 2025, up roughly a third year-on-year, according to the Bank of Zambia. However, businesses trading along the corridor in sectors such as agriculture, retail and wholesale still contend with slow cross-border payments, cash-management burdens and foreign exchange shortages, which tie up working capital.

“The ambition to grow intra-African trade has outpaced the financial infrastructure needed to support it. Many of the continent’s busiest trade corridors remain underserved by payment solutions that help businesses move money efficiently and scale,” said Adewale.

“We’ve spent the past decade building solutions to address these challenges, and we’re now extending that infrastructure to the heart of Africa along the DRC–Zambia corridor. This is part of our own ambition to build a business banking platform that enables African businesses to trade, scale and compete beyond their home markets.”

Nomba plans to raise a further funding round to support its expansion. Over time, it aims to offer businesses on the corridor a wider range of services, including deposits, foreign exchange and credit.

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