Key Ventures
Invest in smart platforms serving mankind
Owned and partly owned platforms built for cross-border scale across the African continent.
Fintech · WOS Holding BV
BelCash / HelloCash
Fintech for the unbanked — Africa's mobile money pioneer. BelCash Technology Solutions PLC (BCTS) is the Ethiopian operating entity of WOS Holding BV and the trade name for its African fintech platforms.
While on vacation in Addis Ababa in 2010, Diop and co-founder Abraham Gulilat noticed a bank check took four hours to process. Seeing that inefficiency as a market opportunity, they focused on Ethiopia and its population of over 100 million, where over 70% of people were unbanked.
BelCash answered with a white-label mobile money platform on a PaaS model, allowing banks and telecoms to deploy digital financial services without building their own technology. Telecom and Banking solutions remain its most established products.
3M+
Subscribers by 2024, up from 1.4M in 2020
500K
Transactions processed daily
200B birr
≈ $7B in transactions since 2015
6
Financial institutions using the PaaS
| Strength | Impact |
|---|---|
| Proprietary Technology | Owns its own platform and infrastructure — not reliant on third-party providers |
| Scalable PaaS Model | 6 financial institutions already using the platform |
| First-Mover Advantage | Established leader in Ethiopia's fintech market |
| Pan-African Potential | Technology deployable across the continent via the AfCFTA |
| High Transaction Volume | 500,000 daily transactions demonstrating market trust and adoption |
| Financial Inclusion Impact | Banking services for millions of previously unbanked Ethiopians |
| Rapid User Growth | From 1.4 million to over 3 million subscribers in four years |
Community commerce OS · WOS IP / BelCash Group
Helloopass
A mobile trading Platform-as-a-Service owned by World Open Services (WOS IP) / BelCash Group — an operating system that facilitates trade between community members and between communities, and one of the fastest growing trading platforms in Africa.
Rather than being primarily an event creation tool, Helloopass functions as a community commerce OS: peer-to-peer trading between individuals within communities, inter-community trade, digital wallets for secure value exchange, QR code payments for seamless transactions, and white-label capabilities on Android, iOS and web for local partners.
In one sentence: Helloopass is one of Africa's fastest growing community trading OS platforms, with 500,000 users, 5,000 daily merchants, native embedded models, UN World Food Programme adoption in Ethiopia, and expansion across 20 African markets by 2028.
500,000
End users
5,000
Daily active merchants
UN WFP
Institutional adoption in Ethiopia
Native embedded models
- Marketplace
- Enables buying and selling between community members
- Distribution
- Facilitates supply chain and goods distribution networks
- Disbursement
- Supports bulk payments, aid distribution and transfers
- eCommerce
- Powers online retail and digital storefronts
- Sponsored Wallets
- Allows third-party funding of user wallets (NGOs, governments, brands)
Distinctive features
- Best Deals
- An advanced loyalty capacity for buyers.
- Rewards Capacity
- A unique ability to reward stakeholders across the ecosystem.
- Buy Now, Pay Later
- BNPL facilities based on the traditional African market practice where suppliers provide payment facilities to buyers.
Pan-African expansion, 2026–2028
Completed (2026) · 4 countries
Zambia, Ivory Coast, Ethiopia, Kenya
2027 · 12 countries
Ghana, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Uganda, Central African Republic, Cameroon, Nigeria, DRC, Cabo Verde, Guinea Conakry, Senegal, Zimbabwe
2028 · 4 countries
Malawi, Rwanda, Togo, Benin
Total: 20 African markets by 2028
What makes it unique
| Strength | Impact |
|---|---|
| Community OS | Facilitates trade within and between communities |
| Fastest Growing | One of Africa's fastest growing trading platforms |
| Native Embedded Models | Marketplace, Distribution, Disbursement, eCommerce, Sponsored Wallets |
| No Prepayment | Merchants join with revenue-sharing, not upfront fees |
| UN Adoption | Validated by the WFP for aid distribution in Ethiopia |
| Diaspora Connectivity | Remittance corridors (CVE/EUR, USD, GBP) |
| White-Label | Full customization for local partners on Android, iOS and web |
| Strength | Impact |
|---|---|
| Proprietary Kernel | Built on its own operating system — not reliant on third-party platforms |
| Multi-Model Platform | Marketplace, distribution, disbursement, e-commerce and sponsored wallets |
| Rapid Growth | 500,000 users in 18 months of pilot |
| BNPL Innovation | A financing model based on African market traditions |
| Pan-African Expansion | Active or launching in Kenya, Zambia and Ivory Coast; 10 countries targeted by Q2 2027 |
| Loyalty & Rewards | Best Deals loyalty and rewards across the ecosystem |
Remittance PaaS · BelCash with UNCDF & Visa
MamaPays
An innovative remittance and bill-payment platform launched in 2022 by BelCash Technology Solutions PLC in partnership with UNCDF (UN Capital Development Fund) and Visa, founded by Vince Diop as CEO of BelCash.
The platform enables Ethiopians to receive bills via SMS, share a payment link with family abroad, and have those relatives pay the bill directly using credit cards or other digital payment methods — all at a low cost of just $1 per transaction.
Launched in Ethiopia, it faced a temporary suspension in March 2022, mainly because it was a global innovation that required the National Bank of Ethiopia to adjust its regulatory frame around licensing and compliance. The suspension was lifted in early 2023 once the requirements were addressed, allowing operations to resume.
A new version of the platform has been integrated into Helloopass. This integrated solution will be expanded across Africa, with Kenya confirmed as the next target market, followed by a broader pan-African rollout.
Recognition
MamaPays was selected as a winner in a global competition organised by UNCDF, which sought out innovative digital financial solutions aimed at improving financial inclusion and remittance flows in developing countries. Visa recognised it as one of the most innovative platforms of the year for its groundbreaking approach to remittances and cross-border payments — dual recognition from a UN-affiliated development agency and a global payments leader.
| Strength | Impact |
|---|---|
| UNCDF Global Contest | Selected as a winner of the UN Capital Development Fund's global search for innovative digital financial solutions |
| Visa Recognition | Named by Visa one of the most innovative platforms of the year for its approach to cross-border payments |
| $1 per transaction | Bills received by SMS in Ethiopia, shared as a payment link and settled by relatives abroad by card |
| Regulatory milestone | Temporarily suspended in March 2022 while the National Bank of Ethiopia adapted its regulatory frame; lifted in early 2023 |
| Integrated into Helloopass | A new version now runs inside the Helloopass ecosystem, with Kenya confirmed as the next market |
Renewable energy · via Power Solar BV
HelloSolar
Smart energy for Africa's growing cities. Founded in Ethiopia in 2017, HelloSolar PLC is a solar home-based factory operating on a pay-as-you-go model.
The venture brings renewable energy to off-grid and underserved communities. DIOP Tech BV owns shares in Power Solar BV, which holds the majority in HelloSolar PLC in Ethiopia; DIOP Tech BV has no direct investment in the Ethiopian PLC.
| Strength | Impact |
|---|---|
| Pay-as-You-Go Model | Affordable access to solar energy for low-income households |
| Sustainable Impact | Reduces reliance on fossil fuels and supports climate goals |
| Scalability | Can be expanded to multiple African countries |
| Growing Demand | Africa's energy needs are projected to double by 2040 |
Group structure
How the ventures fit together
| Entity | Role in the group |
|---|---|
| WOS Holding BV | Parent company of BelCash and its fintech solutions |
| Power Solar BV | DIOP Tech BV holds shares in Power Solar BV, which in turn holds the majority in HelloSolar PLC in Ethiopia. DIOP Tech BV has no direct investment in the Ethiopian PLC. |
| Marketing & Sales companies | DIOP Tech BV has invested in several marketing and sales companies across Africa, fully oriented toward marketing, sales and distribution. |