When Maijid and I started Chipper Cash back in 2018, our main focus was on solving the cross-border payments challenge many across Africa face daily. For this reason, we started with one product in just two countries. Three years later, we’ve evolved Chipper Cash into a platform with multiple products across multiple countries, including the United Kingdom and the United States.
To say that the last year has been eventful would be an understatement.
So, as this year comes to a close, I wanted to take some time to reflect on the highlights, challenges, and lessons learned even as we continue to accelerate our growth globally.
The Year in Review
It’s extremely difficult to choose one highlight for the year. There’s just so much that happened, from our launches in the UK, USA, and South Africa, to growing our teams to just under 300 employees globally, and of course raising over $200 million across two Series C funding rounds.
A particularly memorable event for us this year was hosting our special event in San Francisco where we also unveiled Burna Boy as our Global Brand Ambassador.
Burna Boy is one of the strongest partners any organization could have. He’s someone who continuously raises the bar, only to break it. And his greatness is instilled in his humility and love for Africa, continuously representing the continent at the highest levels.
It’s strong, meaningful partnerships like this that are at the heart of what we do. With this partnership, I’m confident that we’ll continue to advance well on our journey.
2021 in a nutshell
If I could summarize the year in three words, they would be challenging, strong, and foundational.
Yes, there were hurdles to overcome this past year. Yes, there were times when we questioned if we were doing the right thing. And yes, the pressure of trying to fix one of the most challenging problems facing billions of people across a continent can take a toll on any organization if there isn’t a deliberate and continued effort to instill and preserve a strong company culture.
But despite all that, we’re ending this year better than we went in, and 2022 is looking to be our best year yet.
Our greatest challenges
One of our biggest challenges of 2021 was maintaining a strong company culture as we grow and navigating an ever competitive and regulated landscape.
Over the course of the year, we have grown from 87 employees to just under 300 employees across our global offices. Heading into 2022, that number is only going to increase as we’ll continue hiring passionate and talented people to join us as we continue evolving Chipper and building for the next billion users. (Check out our current openings if you like solving hard and meaningful problems).
It is uniquely rewarding to hear how products we build meaningfully impact the lives of the people who rely on them. Everything we do ultimately boils down to meaningful impact. Every day we receive countless messages from our users about what Chipper means to them and even in the face of seemingly insurmountable challenges, being reminded of our purpose is what helps us stay grounded and keeps us true to our mission.
https://twitter.com/musacoli/status/1453363451527577600?s=10
2022: The journey ahead
As we quickly approach 2022, our mission remains the same – to unlock global opportunities for all those on the continent. Progress towards this goal has never been linear or straightforward, nor should it be. As a company, we will continue to put our customers first and build products that allow them to effortlessly interact in this increasingly global economy.
I remain energised and excited by the opportunities ahead for us as a company. Part of unlocking opportunities includes creating them, and building for the next billion people requires many passionate, talented, and driven people all doing their part. So if our work inspires you and you want to work on a team that’s solving problems millions of people face every day, join us - and bring a friend or two along with you.
Here’s to the year that was 2021 and the road that lays ahead for Chipper.
Onwards and upwards!