Karsten Wenzlaff, Advisor
August 26th, 2025
Karsten Wenzlaff is a Crowdfunding and Fintech Expert from Germany. He is Secretary-General of Digit[...]
Canada backs $100M Access Bank deal in Nigeria
Canada-Africa | June 24, 2025
Image: Freepik AI
FinDev Canada Joins Global Partners to Finance MSMEs and Women Entrepreneurs Across Nigeria
Canada’s development finance institution, FinDev Canada, has partnered with DEG (Germany), OeEB (Austria), and ILX (Netherlands) to provide a USD 100 million syndicated loan to Access Bank in Nigeria. This investment will directly support micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) and promote women’s economic empowerment.
Investing in African MSMEs to drive growth
MSMEs provide about 86% of jobs in Nigeria but still face major financing challenges. This loan facility will allow Access Bank to expand financial and non-financial services to underserved groups, including rural businesses, agribusinesses, and women-led enterprises. FinDev Canada is contributing $25 million USD towards this initiative to help increase access to credit, training, and market opportunities.
See: Africa’s Fintech Bridge Is Open for Investment
At least 30% of the loan proceeds are earmarked for women-owned businesses. Access Bank will offer reduced interest rates, business education, and networking support. This is FinDev Canada’s second investment in Access Bank (their first was a $50M loan facility in July 2024) and is fully aligned with the 2X Challenge, an international framework launched at the G7 Summit in 2018 promoting women’s participation in economic growth.
Lori Kerr, CEO of FinDev Canada:
“We can empower women entrepreneurs, develop underserved markets, and support job creation."
Strategic Impact for Canadian fintech and CAFS partners
Launching the first ever global Canada-Africa strategy in early March, and now this follow-on loan facility is a clear signal that Canada is expanding it's financial presence in Africa by supporting fintech infrastructure, sustainable finance, and inclusive business frameworks and models. Access Bank currently operates in 24 countries serving over 60 million customers and has a large digital footprint and a track record of innovation.
Recent data from the 2025 Nigeria FinTech Survey Report by Column confirms this growth: over 23% of young Nigerians now use fintech apps for saving, with digital platforms like Opay, Palmpay, and Kuda seeing wide adoption. The 18 to 44 age bracket reports more than 56% saving consistently (most use multiple apps), indicating demand for integrated financial services. This tech-savvy generation is actively budgeting and planning for their financial futures despite economic instability, making Nigeria a high-potential market for digital finance investment.
Why This Matters for CAFS 2025 and NCFA Members
This deal is aligned with one of the key impacts of the inaugural Canada-Africa Fintech Summit (CAFS) 2025 taking place in Toronto from August 5-8, 2025 to drive practical collaboration between Canadian and African partners across finance and innovation. Nigeria accounts for 28% of Africa’s fintech activity and remains one of the highest growth digital finance markets on the continent.
See: Fintech Grows 3x Faster, 97% of Market Still Untapped
Mobilizing Canadian capital to support financial infrastructure and innovative start-ups can unlock commercial opportunity. NCFA and CAFS participants attending sessions like “Purpose, Profit, Planet” or “From Strategy to Scale” can use this as a live case study of what cross-border investment looks like when it combines capital, digital access, and market growth at scale. Tickets on sale now
The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, artificial intelligence, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
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