From Silicon Valley to Lagos: How one founder is using AI and stablecoins to build Africa’s new digital bank

Jorn Lyseggen has built global companies before. He is best known as the founder of Meltwater, a media intelligence firm that grew from a small startup in Norway into a global company with more than $500 million in annual recurring revenue and 50 offices worldwide.

But for many in Africa’s tech ecosystem, his name is synonymous with MEST Africa, the Pan-African training program he founded in 2008.

Through MEST, Lyseggen has trained and supported over 2,000 African entrepreneurs, helping build some of the continent’s most promising early-stage startups.

Now, after years of nurturing African startups from the sidelines, he’s stepping back into the arena himself. His new venture, BMONI, is an AI-forward financial platform designed for Africa’s young professionals and small business owners — a generation that lives and works across borders yet struggles to move money freely.

The company officially launched in Nigeria on Monday, October 13, marking Jorn’s most personal bet yet, to redefine how Africans spend, save, and move money both at home and abroad.

“There are two technologies today that will change lives everywhere,” he says. “One is AI, which everyone talks about. The second is stablecoins, that make money move faster and cheaper than banks ever could. Combine the two, and you can create a new kind of bank — one that’s radically better.”

At its core, BMONI functions as a bridge, connecting local consumers to global financial systems. Users can open multi-currency accounts, save in U.S. dollars, and use virtual or physical Mastercard debit cards accepted by more than 100 million merchants worldwide.

All transactions are powered by stablecoins, digital currencies pegged to real-world assets like the U.S. dollar.

For Lyseggen, launching in Nigeria was an obvious choice. “If you’re building a new financial model for Africa, you start in Nigeria,” he says. “It’s where innovation happens first.”

And the timing couldn’t be more strategic. Nigeria remains one of Africa’s most active markets for digital payments and stablecoin use, with over $20 billion worth of stablecoins circulating last year alone.

The country’s young, tech-savvy population makes it fertile ground for alternative financial models.

Yet in Nigeria’s fintech ecosystem, trust remains the toughest currency to earn. Years of failed investment schemes, wallet freezes, and crypto bans have made many users sceptical of digital finance.

“Trust is everything,” Lyseggen admits. “We’ll earn it not through marketing, but through performance, transparent fees, reliable service, and technology that genuinely empowers users. Our system lets people control their own wallets. We can’t access their funds even if we wanted to, and that’s how it should be.”

BMONI’s security architecture reflects that philosophy. The platform uses AI-enhanced biometric technology to replace passwords with encrypted facial or fingerprint data.

Its proprietary technology, protected by 22 patents, converts biometric identifiers into cryptographic keys that secure users’ digital wallets.

“It means no one, not even us, can access your funds without your permission,” Lyseggen explains. “It’s financial sovereignty, backed by technology.”

Still, operating in Africa’s complex regulatory landscape requires tact. Despite past restrictions by Nigeria’s Central Bank on cryptocurrency transactions, the country continues to lead in virtual currency adoption, contributing an estimated $59 billion in crypto transaction volume between July 2023 and June 2024.

To ensure compliance, BMONI partners with licensed financial institutions and SEC-regulated exchanges that handle fiat conversions and local transfers. “We don’t offer services like this without being fully compliant. Our local partners, virtual asset service providers, exchanges, and Nigerian SEC-licensed companies, all hold the necessary licenses.”

BMONI entered the market well-funded. The company’s investors include seasoned Silicon Valley venture firms with deep fintech experience — carefully chosen, Lyseggen says, for their “long-term perspective” rather than short-term hype.

The company’s principal backer, ATOS, has supported banking and fintech ventures globally, including across Asia.

“I’ve lived in Silicon Valley since 2005, so we’ve chosen long-term investors with deep fintech experience. As we grow, we’ll add more investors when needed,” he said.

The company’s lean team of 25 engineers and operators, spread across Lagos, Accra, Oslo, and San Francisco, gives BMONI the agility of a startup but the global perspective of a seasoned multinational.

When asked how he defines success in five years, Lyseggen’s answer is clear: “Five years from now, I want BMONI to be one of Nigeria’s most trusted banks — not fintechs, banks. We’re not here to disrupt banking. We’re here to replace it.”

Lyseggen calls BMONI “a new kind of bank.” But it may be more than that, a model for how global finance could evolve when powered by trust, AI, and stablecoins. For Africa’s borderless generation, that future might just start in Nigeria.