Duplo vs Hermes Robotics

About

Duplo is a Nigerian B2B fintech company providing an integrated platform for African businesses to automate payables, receivables, and corporate expense management — enabling companies to pay suppliers via automated payment rails, collect from customers through digital payment links, and manage employee expense cards with controls and reporting. Founded in 2021 and backed by Y Combinator, Oui Capital, and Liquid 2 Ventures with $5.6 million raised, Duplo operates across Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, Côte d'Ivoire, and South Africa with multi-currency support.\n\nDuplo's platform addresses the fragmented B2B payment infrastructure in African markets where businesses still rely heavily on bank transfers initiated through multiple bank portals, paper checks, and informal reconciliation processes. The accounts payable automation enables bulk payment uploads with approval workflows, the accounts receivable product generates payment links that customers pay via mobile money, bank transfer, or card, and the expense management product issues virtual and physical corporate cards with spend controls. The multi-currency support across USD, GBP, EUR, and local currencies addresses the cross-border payment needs of African businesses with international suppliers or customers.\n\nIn 2025, Duplo competes in the African B2B payments and financial operations market with Paystack (Stripe-acquired, primarily consumer payments), Flutterwave, and emerging B2B fintech platforms for African corporate payment automation. The African B2B payments market is substantially underserved by international platforms that don't integrate with local payment rails (M-Pesa, mobile money networks, local bank APIs) — Duplo's local-first approach provides the rail coverage that matters for African businesses. The 2025 strategy focuses on growing enterprise accounts (companies with 50+ employees processing significant payment volume), expanding geographic coverage across more African markets, and adding working capital and lending products that help businesses manage cash flow alongside payment operations.