In the past year, play-to-earn games like Axie Infinity have transformed the livelihoods of thousands of people, particularly in developing nations of Southeast Asia, where high unemployment combined with widespread smartphone penetration have led those struggling during the pandemic to look for an alternative source of income. With Axie, all it took was a smartphone, an internet connection, and a few extra hours.
That success story is not lost on James, 26, and Alice Zhang, 30, founders of up-and-coming cryptocurrency startup Jambo (the word means “hello” in Swahili). Natives of the Democratic Republic of Congo, the siblings started the company six months ago with the aim of bringing Web3, a blockchain-based version of the internet, to Africa. But their ambitions are much bigger than just gaming – they want to create a hub for Africa’s entire digital economy.
“We hope to become the super app of Africa, similarly to what WeChat has done in China in the last decade,” says James.
To that end, the company has revealed exclusively to Forbes the completion of a $30 million Series A funding round led by crypto-focused venture firm Paradigm. It is Paradigm’s first investment in the continent. Other high-profile investors in the round include Pantera Capital, Delphi Ventures, Kingsway Capital and Gemini Frontier Fund. The announcement comes quickly on the heels of Jambo’s $7.5 million seed round raised from Coinbase Ventures, Alameda Research and Tiger Global, among others.
“Axie has been a really good example of how you can onboard a region through play-to-earn,” says Paradigm’s investment partner Casey Caruso, who has also helped the firm’s investment into Axie Infinity’s creator Sky Mavis. “We think of play-to-earn as just the beginning for Africa and specifically the beginning for Jambo.”
With its young population (70% of sub-Saharan Africa is under the age of 30), ever-growing smartphone penetration and third-fastest growing cryptocurrency economy, according to blockchain intelligence firm Chainalysis, the market opportunity is massive.