Aza (formerly BitPesa) was one of the early tech startups in Kenya - Silicon Savannah. An international fintech company with a strong African heritage that made facilitating the flow of currency into Africa its mission from the outset. A product expansion and diversification drive opened up new opportunities. But with a name and visual identity that conveyed Blockchain exclusivity they were restricted in their ability to promote their more recent non-crypto offerings. BitPesa approached Wunderdogs to create a completely new brand, product architecture, name and visual identity to help their expansion.
An agnostic brand was just as important in attracting a new set of stakeholders: global investors and partners. The potential for frontier markets is slowly being realized, however the uncomfortable truth is many are still wary of investing in Africa purely due to misinformation or preconceived ideas.
Africa is becoming a continent of digital natives due to the wide-reaching impact technology is and will continue to have. We wanted to create a brand name and identity that reflected and celebrated this reality, enticing those in Europe and the US to realize and leverage potential within the region.
Prioritizing local research and cultural compatibility checks through our trusted research arm in Lagos provided extensive local, regional and continental insights which formed the foundational framework for our strategic and creative efforts.
The architecture, positioning, brand name, visual identity and all collateral were revisited with the company’s mission front and centre: providing access to and accelerating growth in the frontier markets.
We arrived at a name for the new mother brand: Aza, confirming its suitability by testing with employees across multiple regions before signing off. Aza was selected as an embodiment of the business and the continent in which it is based. Aza’s visual identity was designed to become a symbol of the continent.
Armed with an updated brand architecture, strategic and visual tool kit BitPesa evolved into Aza, successfully securing first $15M for growth from Development Bank of Southern Africa, then raised a $20M Series B and became Africa’s largest non-bank currency provider.
Wunderdogs won a prestigious Core 77 Visual Communication Award for our naming and branding efforts.