Launch Amid Crypto Fragmentation

Nectar Finance, a Nigerian startup building a self-custodial finance app on Solana, has raised $170,000 in pre-seed funding. The round, announced April 14, 2026, backs the public launch of an app that combines wallets, payments, trading, and investments in one place. CEO Felix Daniel and COO Stephanie Okeke founded the company, with developer Danny helping build the original hackathon prototype. The platform targets users in Africa, Asia, and Latin America—regions where traditional credit systems often ignore on-chain activity.

The app lets users manage their own digital assets, spend via Visa cards, and use local payment rails like Nigeria's bank transfers, Brazil's PIX, Southeast Asia's APACA, and international Swift. Trading runs through Jupiter with no gas fees. Users can invest in tokenized stocks through Ondo and Xstocks, set up group savings pools, create wishlists for community contributions, and send money through in-app chat. Infrastructure partners include Perena, Raincards, and Privy. The goal: blockchain functionality without the complexity.

| Funding Fact | Details | |--------------|---------| | Project | Nectar Finance (NectarFi) | | Sector/Category | DeFi / On-Chain Finance for Emerging Markets | | Funding Round | Pre-Seed | | Amount Raised | $170,000 | | Valuation | Undisclosed | | Lead Investor(s) | Not specified; angel-led | | Notable Participants | Angels including Dr. Harri Obi, Nzube Ezudo, and Harrison Obiefule | | Disclosure Gaps | No lead investor named; no valuation provided |

Before launch, Nectar Finance ran a private beta with over 1,000 users in eight countries: Nigeria, South Africa, Kenya, Ghana, Thailand, Indonesia, Brazil, and Argentina. The beta processed more than $7.2 million in transactions in under a year. The platform's on-chain credit scoring builds financial identities from blockchain activity, which could help users without traditional credit histories access loans.

Scaling Regional Traction

The funding will go toward infrastructure development and regional expansion. The team has already won a local Demo Day and placed in a global Solana hackathon. Investor Nzube Ezudo said the platform simplifies crypto—buying assets through Ondo or Xstocks, making local payments—without needing multiple apps. Angel investor Dr. Harri Obi backed the round, citing the opportunity in emerging markets where Nigeria's Solana ecosystem has become a hub for high-volume blockchain startups.

This raise comes as Solana projects gain traction in Africa. Nectar Finance wants to capture users tired of juggling fragmented crypto tools. The public app at app.nectarfi.finance includes Nectar Chat for sending money in conversations and group savings pools yielding up to 10% annually—a digital version of traditional community savings practices like tontines or esusu. COO Stephanie Okeke described the design philosophy: make the infrastructure invisible, like turning on a tap without thinking about the pipes.

• Key investors include angels with regional tech connections, such as Dr. Harri Obi.
• The funding supports full feature rollout following $7.2 million in beta volume.
• The team's main focus is credit access through on-chain data that traditional systems miss.
• Solana's growth in Nigeria, where some startups now process millions monthly, helps the competitive case.
• Beyond the missing valuation, reporting on the round has been consistent across sources.

Nectar Finance's path from hackathon project to funded launch reflects growing interest in integrated DeFi tools for global users. The app is now live for downloads, with security measures aligned to local regulatory requirements. Beta traction suggests real demand for consolidated crypto finance.

Verdict: The round shows angels are still betting on Solana-based DeFi platforms for underserved emerging markets.