Cloud9 Gets $500k from Alliance in Pre-Seed Round

In Short

• Cloud9, a Kenyan fintech, raised $500,000 from Alliance as part of an ongoing pre-seed round.
• Disclosed funding is now $1 million, with Techstars and angel investors also participating.
• The startup plans to expand cross-border payment corridors, improve its app experience, and launch virtual and physical cards.

What Happened

Cloud9 has received $500,000 from Alliance, a New York based accelerator, as it continues raising its pre-seed round. Cloud9 said the new cheque takes its total disclosed funding to $1 million.

A pre-seed round is early funding that helps a startup build the first working product, hire a small team, and test distribution before a larger seed round.

Cloud9 was founded in late 2025 by Tesh Mbaabu and Mesongo Sibuti, who previously co-founded Marketforce. Cloud9 positions itself as a digital bank for informal businesses and retailers across Africa. It bundles banking, global payments, and business tools in one place, similar to a single dashboard for money in and money out.

The company says it will use the funding to move into more cross-border payment corridors, meaning new country to country routes for sending and receiving money. It also plans to improve user experience, and to launch virtual cards and physical cards, which let customers pay online and in stores.

Cloud9 has also been active on acquisitions. It acquired Chpter in an all stock deal in August 2026, and previously acquired mTickets, a ticketing platform, for about KES 100 million in an all stock transaction.

Why It Matters

For informal merchants and small retailers, fragmented payments can mean juggling cash, mobile money, and bank transfers across different apps. A single digital banking product that also supports cross-border payments and cards could simplify daily operations.

Cloud9 also claims early traction, with over 25,000 accounts created and transaction volume growing more than 15% week over week. If those numbers hold, the funding could help the startup scale faster across African markets where SME focused financial tools are still limited.