Casablanca, Morocco — YC-backed FinTech startup Chari has raised $12 million in a Series A round, marking the largest Series A investment ever recorded in Morocco. Founded in 2020 by Ismael Belkhayat and Sophia Alj, the company operates as a digital commerce and financial services platform serving small retailers and grocery stores across the country.
The funding round was co-led by SPE Capital and Orange Ventures, with participation from Verod-Kepple, Global Founders Capital, Plug and Play, Endeavor Catalyst, Pincus Capital, UM6P Ventures, Al Khwarizmi Ventures, Axian Group, Uncovered Fund, AfriMobility, P1 Ventures, Reflect Ventures, Dragon Capital, MyAsia VC, Harambean Prosperity Fund, and H&S Invest Holding. Prominent angel investors including Michael Lahyani (Property Finder) and Karim Beguir (InstaDeep) also joined the round. With this funding, Chari’s total capital raised now stands at $17 million.
Alongside the funding milestone, Chari became the first VC-backed Moroccan startup to receive a Payment Institution Licence from Bank Al-Maghrib, Morocco’s central bank. This authorisation allows Chari to expand its services beyond e-commerce into full financial intermediation — offering payment accounts with Moroccan IBANs, debit cards, bill payments, international transfers, POS acquiring, and micro-insurance products.
Co-founder Sophia Alj said the licence will help transform small grocery stores into financial service points, enabling shopkeepers to digitise operations and compete with modern retail chains. Meanwhile, CEO Ismael Belkhayat revealed that Chari will now open its Banking-as-a-Service (BaaS) infrastructure to third parties, marking a new phase in the company’s evolution.
With this milestone, Chari aims to position itself as Morocco’s first merchant super app, integrating commerce, payments, and financial inclusion for small businesses across North Africa.
