The archive · Money & Fintech · Strategic decision · 2016–2026
Yellow Card's B2B stablecoin pivot: from $1.7B to $3B+ volume, $33M Series C
Yellow Card bet African businesses, not retail traders, would pay for stablecoin rails; volume hit $3B+ by 2024, then a $33M Series C and 50+ markets by 2026.
Yellow Card
What the business is
A licensed stablecoin on/off-ramp and payments infrastructure provider: businesses and fintechs use it to access US dollars, manage treasury and move money across borders via stablecoins and fiat settlement rails.
Starting capital：At least $88M by the 2024 Series C ($33M led by Blockchain Capital, with Polychain, Block, Galaxy, Castle Island and others); $120M+ total equity by 2026.
How it started
Founded in 2016 by Chris Maurice and Justin Poiroux, Yellow Card launched in Nigeria in 2019 as a Bitcoin exchange. It grew to 1 million customers by 2021, but the founders saw that serving small retail users was incredibly costly: every customer still required sanction screening, KYC and chain analysis, while volumes were too small and margins too thin to sustain the business.
What happened
The pivot began around the $40M Series B in 2022: Yellow Card raised minimum transaction amounts to deliberately shrink its broad retail base and appeal to businesses using the platform to manage treasury and access stablecoins. The bet compounded — by October 2024 it served about 30,000 businesses across Africa and internationally, transaction volumes had climbed from $1.7B (early 2023) to over $3B, revenue was up sevenfold since January 2023, and Blockchain Capital led a $33M Series C alongside Polychain, Block, Galaxy Ventures and others.
How it ended up
Still scaling: as of August 2026 Yellow Card operates across more than 50 markets worldwide, has raised over $120M in total equity, holds a South African CASP licence and a Swiss anti-money-laundering affiliation, and counts Visa, Mastercard, Western Union, Thunes and MoneyGram as partners — while expanding into Latin America and Asia-Pacific.
Background
Yellow Card, founded in 2016 by Chris Maurice and Justin Poiroux, launched in Nigeria in 2019 as a crypto exchange and grew to 1 million customers by 2021. But the founders noticed that retail users were expensive to serve: every customer needed sanction screening, KYC and chain analysis, yet small volumes meant thin margins that could not sustain the business.
The company's strategic bet was that African businesses — importers, multinationals and other fintechs — would pay for stablecoin-based treasury and cross-border payment rails, because local currencies were volatile and access to the US dollar scarce. Yellow Card raised minimum transaction amounts, deliberately reduced its retail base, and re-positioned itself as a licensed stablecoin on/off-ramp. By October 2024 it served about 30,000 businesses, transaction volumes had grown from $1.7B in early 2023 to over $3B, and revenue was up sevenfold.
Blockchain Capital led a $33M Series C in October 2024, bringing total funding to at least $88M. By August 2026 Yellow Card had expanded to over 50 markets, passed $120M in total equity raised, secured regulatory licences in South Africa and Switzerland, and signed partnerships with Visa, Mastercard, Western Union, Thunes and MoneyGram — evidence that the B2B stablecoin bet had become the core business, not a side experiment.
What has to be true
- Retail crypto users cost the same in compliance but move far less volume, so per-customer margins could not sustain the business.
- African businesses face dollar shortages and volatile local currencies, making stablecoins a practical utility rather than a speculation play.
- Businesses move larger sums and pay higher fees, letting Yellow Card monetize the same infrastructure several times over.
- Focusing on B2B treasury and cross-border payments positioned the company as infrastructure partners for banks and global fintechs, not a consumer exchange.
What can be applied
When serving small users costs more than they bring in, the fix is not better marketing — it is repositioning the same rails toward the customer segment that moves enough volume to pay for compliance.
Aftermath
As of 2026-09-02 Yellow Card is live and scaling. It operates across more than 50 markets with $120M+ in total equity raised, a South African CASP licence and a Swiss AML affiliation, and partnerships with Visa, Mastercard, Western Union, Thunes and MoneyGram. Its Global USD Accounts product targets businesses, and the company is deepening its presence in Latin America and Asia-Pacific while keeping Africa central to its story.
Sources
- African crypto startup Yellow Card raises $33M led by Blockchain Capital to scale its B2B pivot
- Fintech deepens global expansion after $40m strategic raise
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