Cowrywise Gets License From Nigeria’s Securities and Exchnage Commission

The Nigerian Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has given Cowrywise – a wealth management startup, the license to operate in the country as a funds/portfolio manager.

This development automatically translates to Cowrywise’s operations operating within the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC)regulatory scope. Before getting its license, Cowrywise operated a trustee structure in partnerships with regulated investment companies like Meristem to offer its investments products.

Acquiring its license to operate will therefore help the wealth management startup improve trust with both existing and potential users. Its license from the country’s capital market regulator – the Nigerian Securities and Exchange Commission provides the startup with the backbone that it has always needed to prove itself amongst investors and potential users. The startup is, therefore, expected to get new attention from all corners now that it has a license to operate from SEC.

Cowrywise is the brainchild of founders Edward Popoola and Razaq Ahmed. The startup was founded in 2017 as a way to help Africans improve their wealth management habits. The Lagos-based startup has processed more than $1.5 million in savings for users. In 2018, the company raised a $15,000 seed investment from Microtraction.

Cowrywise has made its mark in the wealth management startups sector since it appeared on the scene. It is one of the wealth management platforms that have found its way into the hearts of Nigerians.

Cowrywise has quite a plethora of savings and investments platforms it offers to the growing demography of young Africans and people who are trying to improve their financial status. The startup claims to have savings-related products that it says are backed by fixed income instruments like treasury bills and yield 10-15 percent more interest than what banks have to offer.

Announcing its license acquisition to users on the platform, the startup said in a mail that “With our own license, the SEC now becomes your guardian”. This means that users of the platform have more protection of their assetsand a structure that keeps these assets safer.

More startups in the wealth management sector are also expected to acquire their licenses from SEC soon, following Cowrywise’s acquisition of its license.