Across Africa, there is a growing appetite for innovation, especially within financial services. This transformation, however, is often hindered by fragmented payment systems.1
As more African professionals earn income from global markets, there is increased interest in investing in global assets, particularly US stocks. However, professionals are left navigating multiple platforms to receive earnings, convert currencies, and execute trades. These barriers introduce additional costs, delays and friction, making it more difficult for Africans to access and invest in global markets. 2,3
Africa also remains the most expensive region in the world to send money because of third parties and foreign exchange fees, with an average remittance cost of 8.37% in Sub-Saharan Africa in Q2 2024.4 This is happening at a time of increased economic growth in Africa. Their digital economy was projected to reach $180 billion by 2025, up from $115 billion in 2020, even as financial infrastructure continues to lag behind the needs of its digital-native workforce.5
Founded in 2022 by Victor Alade, Richard Oyome, and Sodruldeen Mustapha, Raenest was built to help eliminate these barriers by providing multi-currency accounts that allow users to manage payments, finances, and investing in one place. We recently spoke with Tobi Otokiti, the Vice President of Product at Raenest, to understand the mission behind Raenest, their launch of US stocks in Nigeria, and high-yield cash.
Building a Unified Investment Experience
For many African creators, freelancers, and remote professionals, earning in global markets is complicated by fragmented access, slow payments, high fees, and limited investment opportunities.6 Victor Alade, CEO and Co-Founder of Raenest, experienced these challenges firsthand while working as a remote software engineer in Lagos.7
Like many remote professionals in Africa, he frequently encountered delays receiving payments from US employers and lost a significant part of his income due to cross-border fees and unfavorable exchange rates. This inspires one of Raenest’s core beliefs that money shouldn’t stop at earning. It should also enable them to build and grow wealth globally.
“Through user engagement and the active community we've built, we heard the same story repeatedly,” said Otokiti. “Our users who wanted to invest in US stocks had to navigate multiple platforms: one to receive their earnings, another to convert currencies, and another to actually invest. Every step in that chain came with fees, delays, and friction that quietly ate into their returns before they even made a single trade. With Raenest, everything lives in one place. No unnecessary conversions, no hidden costs, no jumping between apps. Our users can receive their dollars, manage their multi-currency account, and invest, all without leaving the platform.”
Partnering With Alpaca to Bring US Stocks to Nigeria
To bridge this gap and give Nigerian users more efficient access to global markets, Raenest partnered with Alpaca.
“Our customers work hard for their money. They need to know their investments are sitting on reliable, regulated infrastructure. Alpaca gives us exactly that, so our customers can invest with confidence,” added Otokiti.
By integrating with Alpaca’s Broker API, Raenest can now enable its users to:
- Buy US Stocks and ETFs directly from their existing accounts
- Earn yield on their idle cash with the help of high yield cash accounts*
- Eliminate unnecessary currency conversions and platform switching
"The partnership with Alpaca is a significant step forward for Raenest,” said Otokiti. “We’re providing our users access to an investment experience within the platform they already trust to manage their finances. This opens up the ability for every Raenest customer to invest in what matters to them, from big tech and leading AI companies to dividend-paying stocks and ETFs.”
“Partnering with Alpaca allows us to expand what’s possible for our users on Raenest. We’re moving beyond helping people receive and manage global income to helping them grow wealth. Now, anyone on Raenest can invest in US stocks and ETFs that match their interests and goals, all within a familiar and trusted experience,” said Majemu Olowodola, Senior Product Manager, Raenest.
“We’re very excited to support Raenest in redefining cross-border banking and global investments for Africans,” said Yoshi Yokokawa, Co-founder and CEO of Alpaca. “We really appreciate the opportunity to work with Raenest. It’s exciting to see them bring access to US markets directly into their products, and we’re glad to support them behind the scenes so they can stay focused on building great experiences for their users.”
Engineering the Future of Wealth Access
Building on this partnership and their newly launched investment capabilities, Raenest now looks to scale its offerings beyond the initial rollout in Nigeria. The company is currently exploring expansion into other key markets, aiming to extend access to US investing tools to a broader user base.
“The launch in Nigeria is the first step in a broader mission to provide wealth access to every Raenest customer. We continue to develop our platform to offer more financial products and services that meet the economic realities of the region,” added Otokiti.
By leveraging Alpaca’s infrastructure, Raenest is also working to enable 24/5 trading for users, providing them with the flexibility to trade US stocks beyond standard hours.
Contact Alpaca
About Alpaca
Alpaca is a US-headquartered, self-clearing broker-dealer and a global leader in brokerage infrastructure APIs providing access to stocks, ETFs, options, fixed income, and crypto. Alpaca delivers embeddable finance solutions for tokenization, fully paid securities lending, high-yield cash, 24/5 trading, Shariah-compliant investing, and more. Today, Alpaca powers over 10 million brokerage accounts across hundreds of fintechs and institutions in 40+ countries with over $320M in funding.
About Raenest
Raenest is a global financial platform built for individuals and businesses to manage money across borders faster, securely, and affordably. Users can open multi-currency accounts in USD, GBP, and EUR, send and receive international payments, receive USDC and USDT deposits, spend globally with dollar cards, and invest in U.S. stocks, all in one place. Their mission is to empower users to stay in control of their finances wherever their journey takes them.
References
- Fragmented Payment Systems Slow Africa Trade Push, Rwanda Trade Minister Says | The Kenyan Wallstreet
- South Africans are quietly finding a new way to get U.S. stock & ETF exposure using USDT
- Democratising Access to the U.S. Stock Market | Tech | Business | Economy
- Remittances to Sub-Saharan Africa remains overpriced
- Unlocking Africa’s $180 billion Digital Trade Economy
- Africa’s freelance economy sees new payments platform in BizFlex - Businessday NG
- Inside Raenest: The Startup Changing How You Get Paid | A Founders Connect Documentary
*Alpaca Securities offers a cash management program pursuant to the FDIC Bank Sweep. Customer funds are treated differently and are subject to separate regulatory regimes depending on whether customer funds are held in their brokerage account or within the FDIC Bank Sweep. Alpaca Securities is a member of the Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC), which protects securities customers of its members up to $500,000 (including $250,000 for claims for cash). The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) insures up to $250,000 per deposit against the failure of an FDIC member bank. Customer funds held in brokerage accounts are SIPC insured, but are not eligible for FDIC insurance coverage. Funds maintained in the FDIC Bank Sweep are intended to be eligible for pass-through FDIC insurance coverage but are not covered by SIPC. FDIC insurance does not protect against the failure of Alpaca, Alpaca Securities, or their affiliates, nor against malfeasance by their employees. Program banks that participate in the FDIC Bank Sweep are not members of SIPC, and therefore, funds held in the Program are not SIPC protected. Please see alpaca.markets/disclosures for important additional disclosures regarding Alpaca Securities brokerage offering, as well as FDIC Bank Sweep terms and conditions.
The content of this blog is for general informational purposes only. All examples are for illustrative purposes only.
Alpaca and Raenest are not affiliated and neither is responsible for the liabilities of the other.
Securities brokerage services are provided by Alpaca Securities LLC (dba "Alpaca Clearing"), member FINRA/SIPC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of AlpacaDB, Inc. Technology and services are offered by AlpacaDB, Inc.
All investments involve risk and the past performance of a security, or financial product does not guarantee future results or returns. There is no guarantee that any investment strategy will achieve its objectives. Keep in mind that while diversification may help spread risk, it does not assure a profit, or protect against loss. There is always the potential of losing money when you invest in securities, or other financial products. Investors should consider their investment objectives and risks carefully before investing.
Orders placed outside regular trading hours (9:30 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. ET) may experience price fluctuations, partial executions, or delays due to lower liquidity and higher volatility. Orders not designated for extended hours execution will be queued for the next trading session. Additionally, fractional trading may be limited during extended hours. For more details, please review Alpaca Extended Hours & Overnight Trading Risk Disclosure.
The testimonials, statements, and opinions presented on the website are applicable to the specific individuals. It is important to note that individual circumstances may vary, and may not be representative of the experience of others. There are no guarantees of future performance or success. The testimonials are voluntarily provided and are not paid, nor were they provided with free products, services or any other benefit in exchange for said statements.
Fractional share trading allows a customer to buy and sell fractional share quantities and dollar amounts of certain securities. Fractional share trading presents unique risks and is subject to particular limitations that you should be aware of before engaging in such activity. See Alpaca Customer Agreement at https://alpaca.markets/disclosures for more details.
Options trading is not suitable for all investors due to its inherent high risk, which can potentially result in significant losses. Please read Characteristics and Risks of Standardized Options before investing.
Fixed income securities can experience a greater risk of principal loss when interest rates rise. These investments are also subject to additional risks, including credit quality fluctuations, market volatility, liquidity constraints, prepayment or early redemption, corporate actions, tax implications, and other influencing factors.
Alpaca does not make any representation that its products or services are Shariah-compliant. Customers are solely responsible for determining whether any offering meets their own Shariah requirements.
Please read Important Risk Disclosures With Respect To Participating In Fully Paid Securities Lending Transactions carefully before deciding whether to participate in lending Fully Paid Securities or agreeing to enter into a Master Securities Lending Agreement with Alpaca Securities LLC.
These disclosures describe important characteristics of, and risks associated with engaging in, securities-lending transactions.
Alpaca's Instant Tokenization Network is owned and developed by AlpacaDB, Inc. and Alpaca Crypto LLC.
Additional geographic restrictions may apply for tokenization services based on local regulatory requirements. Neither Alpaca Crypto LLC nor Alpaca Securities LLC are the issuer of, nor directly involved in, the tokenization of any assets. Tokenization is performed by a third party. Tokenized assets do not represent direct equity ownership in any underlying company or issuer. Instead, tokenized assets generally provide economic exposure to the equity securities of an underlying issuer. As such, holders of tokenized assets have no voting rights, dividend entitlements, or legal claims to the underlying company shares or any residual assets in the event of the underlying company’s liquidation or insolvency, unless explicitly stated otherwise. All investments involve risk. For more information, please see our Tokenization Risk Disclosure.
Cryptocurrency is highly speculative in nature, involves a high degree of risks, such as volatile market price swings, market manipulation, flash crashes, and cybersecurity risks. Cryptocurrency regulations are continuously evolving, and it is your responsibility to understand and abide by them. Cryptocurrency trading can lead to large, immediate and permanent loss of financial value. You should have appropriate knowledge and experience before engaging in cryptocurrency trading. For additional information, please click here.
Cryptocurrency services are made available by Alpaca Crypto LLC ("Alpaca Crypto"), a FinCEN registered money services business (NMLS # 2160858), and a wholly-owned subsidiary of AlpacaDB, Inc. Alpaca Crypto is not a member of SIPC or FINRA. Cryptocurrencies are not stocks and your cryptocurrency investments are not protected by either FDIC or SIPC. Please see the Disclosure Library for more information.
This is not an offer, solicitation of an offer, or advice to buy or sell securities or cryptocurrencies or open a brokerage account or cryptocurrency account in any jurisdiction where Alpaca Securities or Alpaca Crypto, respectively, are not registered or licensed, as applicable.
