Moroccan B2B e-commerce and fintech startup Chari secured $12 million in series A funding to expand its services for local retailers and introduce a Banking-as-a-Service (BaaS) platform.

The round was co-led by SPE Capital, a private equity firm based in Tunisia, and Orange Ventures, the investment arm of the global telecom company. Other participants include Verod-Kepple Africa Ventures, Plug and Play, Endeavor Catalyst, and Pincus Capital.

Founded in 2020 by Ismael Belkhayat and Sophia Alj, the Y Combinator-backed startup initially helped small Moroccan shop owners manage online orders and deliveries. It has since expanded to offer credit and digital tools that streamline merchants’ daily operations.

Turning the retail app into a super app for small businesses

Chari addresses Morocco’s fragmented and inefficient supply chains, a major obstacle for local shop owners, who are often limited by middlemen and cash transactions.

The fintech’s mobile app enables small retailers to order and receive direct delivery of fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG). The company aims to expand the platform into a super app, offering merchants a comprehensive tool for product purchases, payments, credit access, and business operations management.

Chari plans to expand its financial services with the new funding by adding point-of-sale (POS) terminals. It also intends to add an online payment gateway for digital transactions, a bookkeeping app called Karny to track customer credit, and a business management tool to monitor sales and expenses.

The platform now allows users to pay bills, top up mobile airtime, and even sell insurance, creating new income opportunities for small businesses.

According to Belkhayat, the new investment will help the fintech company accelerate its mission to empower merchants across Morocco.

“We are building a single platform that helps every small retailer manage purchases, payments, and financial services in one place,” he said.

Building Morocco’s first banking-as-a-service infrastructure

Chari is also expanding from small stores to fintech with the creation of a Banking-as-a-Service (BaaS) platform that enables other companies to offer financial services without having to build the underlying technology.

The company also enables fintech startups, e-commerce merchants, and large enterprises to integrate financial services on their platforms via application programming interfaces (APIs). These APIs provide access to Chari’s internally built infrastructure for issuing cards, authenticating customer identities (KYC), and processing digital wallets.

“We are building a BaaS platform to power the next generation of digital finance,” said Alj. “The funding will help us strengthen our infrastructure and support partners who want to integrate financial services into their products.”

This move transforms Chari into a technology enabler for the wider financial ecosystem, extending its reach beyond Morocco’s retail sector by offering its fintech tools to other companies.

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Strengthening Africa’s retail and fintech link

Chari’s growth exemplifies how small businesses are driving digital transformation in Africa. By integrating financial services into an accessible platform, the e-commerce outfit formalises the participation of previously underserved merchants in the digital economy.

Chari’s appeal to investors like SPE Capital and Orange Ventures lies in its dual approach: bolstering small retailers while developing fintech infrastructure, capitalising on the growth potential of both digital commerce and financial inclusion.

“Chari’s model, which links merchant services with embedded finance, represents a major opportunity to create value in the region,” said Nabil Triki, Managing Partner at SPE Capital. Similarly, Verod-Kepple Africa Ventures noted that the company’s focus on small businesses aligns with its vision of scalable, tech-driven growth across Africa.

Since its founding, Chari has steadily expanded, investing in logistics, credit scoring, and software development. This new funding strengthens its ability to digitise Morocco’s large informal retail network and power digital finance for other companies.

Chari’s evolution from retail enabler to financial infrastructure provider has the potential to transform financial interactions for small merchants, fintechs, and businesses throughout North Africa.