MoneyBadger Raises $400K to Scale Bitcoin Payments Across South Africa’s Retail Sector
MoneyBadger, a South African crypto payments platform, has secured $400,000 in pre-seed funding to scale its Bitcoin and digital asset-based financial solutions.
The $400,000 raise was led by P1 Ventures, a venture capital firm with strong expertise in African fintech, alongside three angel investors active in the Bitcoin and crypto ecosystem.
MoneyBadger CEO Carel van Wyk explains that the company was created in response to Pick n Pay’s interest in integrating Bitcoin payments into its point-of-sale systems.
He adds that advancements in Bitcoin payments, especially through the Lightning Network, enabled them to build a high-performing prototype extremely reliable, faster, and more cost-effective than traditional credit card tap-to-pay systems.
Since then, Carel van Wyk co-founder of leading African crypto exchange Luno and Carl Kritzinger, founder of FireWorks, have brought together a top-tier team of builders, operators, and crypto-native experts.
Ben Blaine, head of growth, is an experienced founder and former marketing specialist at SnapScan, one of South Africa’s pioneering fintech successes.
Brent Peterson, Head of Legal and Compliance, is a recognized expert in cryptocurrency regulation and currently serves as chair of the Crypto Asset Association of South Africa. Completing the team is Jacques Marais, a full-stack engineer with extensive experience in infrastructure and payment systems.
The company has rolled out Bitcoin and crypto payment solutions across more than 1,600 retail outlets in South Africa, including all Pick n Pay hypermarkets, supermarkets, clothing stores, and express branches.
MoneyBadger integrates seamlessly with wallets like Binance, Luno, VALR, and AltCoinTrader, while platforms such as Luno, VALR, Blink, and Aqua have adopted its proprietary QR scanning technology broadening access to Bitcoin payments for everyday consumers.
Today, consumers can use Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies to pay for groceries and a wide range of value-added services including airtime, electricity, bill payments, and travel tickets.
Since launching, transaction volumes have surpassed $83,000 (approximately R1.4 million) per month, reaching thousands of crypto spenders across South Africa,” says Van Wyk. “Bitcoin has surged 128% since 2022—from around $40,000 to $108,000 in June. We believe this growth will continue, making the Bitcoin user base increasingly valuable to retailers and merchants.”
“Pick n Pay sees over R1 million in cryptocurrency flowing through our tills each month, and the numbers keep rising,” says Deven Moodley, executive head of the retailer’s value-added services, financial services, and mobile division.
MoneyBadger is now growing its merchant network by partnering with established payment service providers.
It focuses on partnering with payment providers that serve major Tier 1 retailers, e-commerce platforms, and QR-based payment networks.
Van Wyk states, “This funding round partly backed in Bitcoin allows us to fast-track these partnerships and extend our trusted service to more consumers, merchants, use cases, and countries. We see a future where Bitcoin can be used to buy anything, anywhere.”
Hisham Halbouny, Managing Partner at P1 Ventures, remarks, “While the West debates crypto regulation, MoneyBadger is already making Bitcoin spendable at scale. We’re backing this exceptional team because they’ve experienced the problem firsthand, built solutions from the ground up, and are now scaling a model that redefines daily payments across Africa.”
“Carel and Carl are building critical infrastructure backed by deep technical knowledge and domain expertise. We believe the next chapter of crypto utility will be written right here in Africa.”
MoneyBadger allows consumers to use Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies to pay for everyday goods and services across retailers and service providers, from grocery stores to municipal bills and travel bookings.
Their mission is rooted in the belief that permissionless innovation and open systems can bridge the Bitcoin economy with traditional retail—offering not just novelty, but a scalable, practical, and superior alternative to conventional money.
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