Pantera Partners Interpret Jambo: The "Super App" Bringing Web3 to Africa

Original Title: 《Web3 Super-App for Africa》

Author: Paul Veradittakit, Pantera Capital

Compiled by: Runsheng, Chain Catcher

Jambo is a new super app focused on bringing web3 to the African market, aiming to attract the next billion African users. Pantera is excited to participate in Jambo's $30 million Series A funding alongside institutions like Paradigm, Delphi, and Gemini, as they provide a complete suite of web3 products for African citizens.

Africa has some of the most promising emerging cryptocurrency markets. It is the fastest-growing continent, with a projected population of 1.7 billion by 2030 and 2.5 billion by 2050. Additionally, 75% of the population is under 35 years old, making it an ideal market for emerging crypto consumption. The number of internet users in Africa is also substantial, with Nigeria having 155 million, Egypt 55 million, and Kenya 47 million. Many of these individuals are curious about cryptocurrency and wish to engage more with the blockchain and web3 markets. A clear example of this trend is the success of the cryptocurrency mobile trading app VALR, which was recently launched in Africa and is also one of Pantera's portfolio companies.

Among the African countries adopting cryptocurrency, Nigeria, Kenya, and South Africa rank in the top ten. From July 2020 to June 2021, Africans received over $100 billion in cryptocurrency payments. Due to the often limited access to robust financial services infrastructure, the decentralized and relatively secure nature of cryptocurrency is highly appealing to African citizens.

Analysis of the African market. Source: Jambo

Products

With Africa already showing strong interest in web3, cryptocurrency will naturally continue to expand here in the form of a more comprehensive web3 experience. This is exactly what Jambo offers: a "super app" that contains everything new cryptocurrency users need to integrate into web3.

Jambo's presence in Africa to date. Source: Jambo

These features will collectively form the Jambo ecosystem and facilitate user entry into web3. The first product the team plans to launch is JamboAcademy. JamboAcademy will establish a broad ambassador network—one city at a time—with the goal of building stronger communities across Africa. Through these communities, Jambo aims to establish a significant presence in major population centers to later help expand its reach to smaller areas. More importantly, as Jambo rapidly expands its influence and gains a fundamental understanding of cultural nuances, JamboAcademy is developing web3 courses tailored to young audiences and local cultures. Jambo has partnered with AllianceDAO to assist in educating and impacting the lives of billions in Africa.

JamboAcademy aims to empower African citizens through web3 education. Source: Jambo

To help users fully understand and integrate into web3, it is also important for the Jambo team to consider web2. Jambo plans to collaborate with many traditional companies and local African fintech firms to support its app's product suite and assist users involved. These web2 applications will complement Jambo's web3 technology and ensure a seamless and user-native participation experience for individuals. Jambo is also committed to becoming the most pre-installed web3-related app on the African continent, which will enhance their user acquisition and help retain users.

Jambo's African ambassador network. Source: Jambo

Current Development Status

Launched in November 2021, Jambo has made significant progress across Africa. The app currently has a strong presence in South Africa, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, and more African countries. To date, Jambo has assembled a team of 100 members and opened offices in 15 countries, including Nigeria, Kenya, and South Africa.

JamboAcademy courses. Source: Jambo

Team

The founding team of Jambo consists of locals with deep knowledge and expertise in the African crypto market. The company's CEO, James Zhang, is a serial entrepreneur from the Democratic Republic of Congo who has been active in the crypto community since 2015. The team has also built an impressive advisory board, including Sandeep Nailwal, Santiago Roel Santos, Piers Kicks, Joe McCann, Jordan Momtazi, Will Robinson, Qiao Wang, Colleen Sullivan, and Ryan Selkis.

Next Steps for Jambo

As web3 experiences explosive growth in Africa, Jambo is poised to become an integrated super app for earning, trading, and understanding blockchain-related content. The combination of a blockchain product suite with technical educational content will be a powerful component of Jambo's go-to-market strategy. Furthermore, investing in digital tokens will provide African citizens with a new level of financial autonomy that was previously unattainable. A key component of Pantera's investment theme is the democratization of access to web3, and we are particularly excited to partner with Jambo as they create and strengthen Africa's emerging web3 ecosystem.