South African fintech startup OneDosh has raised $1 million in a pre-seed funding round to develop its stablecoin-powered payments infrastructure, the company announced this week. The funding will be directed toward building the platform’s core technology and expanding its team, with a focus on facilitating faster and cheaper cross-border transactions.
The round was led by a group of angel investors, including Brett StClair, a former executive at Google and AdMob. OneDosh, founded in 2025 by CEO Kyle Hauptfleisch, aims to create a system where users can send stablecoins globally and have recipients receive the funds instantly in their local currency. The platform is designed to work with various stablecoins, digital assets pegged to the value of fiat currencies like the US dollar, to mitigate the price volatility commonly associated with cryptocurrencies.
“We are building a payments infrastructure that leverages stablecoins to facilitate instant, low-cost global transactions,” Hauptfleisch said. The company’s proposition targets the persistent challenges in cross-border payments across Africa and other emerging markets, where high fees, slow settlement times, and limited access to traditional banking corridors remain significant hurdles.
The move by OneDosh reflects a broader trend within the African fintech sector, where companies are increasingly exploring blockchain-based solutions to improve financial inclusion and payment efficiency. While mobile money services like M-Pesa have achieved widespread penetration in East Africa, the continent’s integration into the global financial system still faces friction, particularly for small and medium-sized enterprises and migrant workers sending remittances.
Stablecoins are seen by proponents as a potential bridge between the traditional financial system and the digital asset ecosystem, offering the programmability and borderless nature of cryptocurrencies without their typical price swings. However, the regulatory landscape for such assets remains nascent and varies significantly across jurisdictions. In South Africa, the Financial Sector Conduct Authority has begun to formalize its approach to crypto assets, requiring service providers to obtain licenses.
OneDosh’s model will require navigating these evolving regulations while building trust with users and financial partners. The company has stated its intent to operate as a fully regulated entity, though specific licensing details were not disclosed. Its success will likely depend on its ability to demonstrate reliability, security, and seamless integration with existing financial rails in its target markets.
The $1 million pre-seed investment provides the fledgling company with capital to advance from concept to a functional product. The funding is a vote of confidence in a niche that has attracted growing attention, though it remains a fraction of the capital deployed into more established African fintechs focusing on traditional payment processing. The coming months will test OneDosh’s ability to translate its stablecoin thesis into a viable service for businesses and consumers seeking alternatives to costly international wire transfers.