Raenest

Raenest is a Lagos-based financial technology company founded in 2022 that provides cross-border banking infrastructure for African freelancers, remote workers, digital creators, and small businesses. The platform lets users hold multi-currency balances, receive payments from abroad, convert currencies, spend with global debit cards, and access U.S. equity markets from a single app.

The Problem Raenest Addresses

For Africans earning in USD, GBP, or EUR from international clients and platforms, the traditional banking system creates friction at every step. High conversion fees, slow settlement, and limited access to dollar-denominated accounts prevent millions of workers from participating fully in the global economy. Raenest provides a practical solution: an account a freelancer in Lagos or Accra can use to receive a Upwork payment, pay a software subscription in USD, and transfer the remainder to a local bank account without the overhead of conventional cross-border banking.

How Raenest Works

After completing KYC verification through the app, users receive virtual bank account numbers in USD, GBP, and EUR that they can share with payment platforms or international clients. For stablecoin payments, a separate wallet address is generated on the chosen blockchain network following an additional questionnaire and approval process.

The stablecoin workflow is automatic: a user shares their wallet address, receives USDT or USDC on a supported network, and Raenest converts the incoming stablecoins to USD at a guaranteed 1:1 rate with no hidden spread. The converted balance sits in the wallet, ready to spend on a Visa card, transfer to a bank account, or hold on platform. Virtual and physical Visa cards are issued directly within the app and accepted wherever Visa operates globally.

Key Features

Raenest Fasttrack connects Upwork accounts to the platform and delivers funds within one hour of a withdrawal request, bypassing the multi-day window of standard Upwork bank transfers.

Raenest Tag enables free peer-to-peer transfers between Raenest users through a username-based system, eliminating transaction fees for internal movement of funds.

Smart Invoicing lets freelancers and consultants generate and send professional invoices with embedded payment details, including stablecoin wallet addresses for international clients who prefer on-chain settlement. Payment Links allow merchants and creators to accept payments without a full invoicing workflow. Bill Payments are handled in-app for recurring domestic expenses.

U.S. Stock Investing, offered through a partnership with Alpaca Securities, lets users buy shares in globally listed companies directly from their Raenest balance. Banking services for U.S.-resident users are provided via Regent Bank. Raenest Perks is a loyalty program tied to card spend.

Solana Integration

In March 2026, Raenest added Solana to its list of supported stablecoin deposit networks. The platform had previously accepted stablecoin deposits on Ethereum, BNB Smart Chain, Polygon, and Tron. With Solana added, users can now use a Raenest wallet address on Solana to receive USDT or USDC.

Incoming stablecoins on Solana are automatically converted to USD at a 1:1 rate with no deposit fee. USDC or USDT transferred to a Raenest address on Solana settles quickly, converts automatically, and becomes spendable through the Raenest card and transfer infrastructure. For Solana users who need a regulated fiat offramp into African local currencies or global spending power, Raenest provides a path from an on-chain wallet to a Visa card or local bank transfer.

Supported Assets and Networks

Raenest supports fiat accounts in USD, GBP, and EUR. Stablecoin accounts support USDT and USDC across five blockchain networks: Ethereum, BNB Smart Chain, Polygon, Tron, and Solana. All stablecoin deposits convert to USD at 1:1 with no deposit fee charged on the Raenest side.

Team and History

Raenest was founded in 2022 by Victor Alade (CEO), Sodruldeen Mustapha, and Richard Oyome. The company launched as an Employer of Record platform before pivoting to cross-border payments. The consumer product initially operated under the Geegpay brand, a digital financial platform targeted at African freelancers, while the parent entity Raenest developed a broader multi-product financial services vision. As the platform expanded into business banking and international markets, the two brands were consolidated under the Raenest name.

In February 2025, Raenest closed an 11 million dollar Series A round led by QED Investors, with participation from Norrsken22, Ventures Platform, P1 Ventures, and Seedstars, bringing total venture funding to 14.3 million dollars. By October 2025, the company reported having served more than one million users and moved over 2 billion dollars in payments.

In October 2025, Raenest formally launched in the United States at its Raenest Exchange 2025 event in Lagos, extending the platform to African diaspora members who want to manage finances on both sides of the Atlantic. Diaspora users can send money to Nigerian wallets through auto-created local currency accounts.

Compliance and Licensing

Raenest is licensed in Nigeria as an International Money Transfer Operator and in Canada as a Money Services Business, and is pursuing additional regulatory approvals as it expands into new markets. The platform explicitly identifies itself as a financial technology company rather than a bank, partnering with regulated banking institutions for deposit and card services in specific markets.

Fit in the Solana Ecosystem

Raenest primary identity is as a regulated fintech rather than a blockchain-native product, but its Solana integration positions it as a practical fiat offramp for Solana users. The addition of Solana to its stablecoin rails in March 2026 means that USDC and USDT flows originating on-chain can exit cleanly into a dollar balance, a physical card, or a local bank transfer in African markets where such infrastructure has historically been sparse. For the Solana ecosystem, Raenest extends the practical utility of on-chain stablecoin settlement into African fiat rails and consumer spending infrastructure.