🦊/Companies

Flow48

Founded 2022 · 45 employees on LinkedIn · 10 known investors

Find your way into Flow48

343 people in our graph share verified history with the Flow48 team — schools, employers, funds. One of them is your warm intro.

Sandra Schwarzerunlockedknows Idriss Al Rifai · together at Sciences Po (overlapped)
×6knows the team · via University of Pennsylvania
knows the team · via Institut national des langues et civilisations orientales (Inalco)
×4knows the team · via The University of Chicago Booth School of Business

Flow48 provides Revenue Based Financing and Invoice Financing to South African SMEs, letting businesses access working capital against future revenue or unpaid invoices without collateral or equity dilution. Applications are made online with funding typically delivered within 24–48 hours.

Founders & leadership

Flow48 was founded in 2022 by Idriss Al Rifai.

IAIdriss Al Rifai
Idriss Al RifaiinCo-Founder & CEOHe previously founded Fetchr and held a strategy and data transformation role at Glovo.

Investors · 10

Funding

SEC filings, press & company announcements

$69M disclosed across 1 of 3 rounds · 2023–2025

Source: company announcements and press reports — follow each round's link for the claim.

Company profile

researched Aug 2026

Flow48 is a business finance provider serving small and medium-sized enterprises in South Africa. It offers two products: invoice-based financing, which advances cash against unpaid customer invoices on 30-, 60- or 90-day payment terms, and revenue-based financing, which provides working capital sized against a business's future revenue rather than its balance sheet, with repayments that flex in line with revenue.

The company positions the products as alternatives to both bank debt and equity investment: funding requires no collateral and no equity dilution, and is intended for uses such as purchasing stock, hiring staff, fulfilling large orders, managing seasonal revenue dips and covering general operating costs.

Business model

Flow48 extends working capital to SMEs through invoice financing and revenue-based financing, with repayment schedules structured around the borrower's revenue or the settlement of financed invoices. It also operates a borrower referral channel.

Full profile — market position, technology, go-to-market, geography

Market position

Positions itself as an alternative business funding provider for SMEs competing with traditional bank lenders and equity investors.

The company contrasts its offering with traditional bank lending (collateral requirements, covenants, paperwork, early payment penalties, multi-week approvals) and with equity funding (dilution, loss of control, lengthy due diligence, reporting requirements), emphasising instead fast approvals, no collateral, non-dilutive capital, flexible repayments and transparent fees.

Technology

Flow48 uses electronic enrollment and approval, with online document upload and automated eligibility assessment based on submitted banking and revenue data.

Go-to-market

Customers apply through an online, digital-only process: they create an account, register business and banking details, upload bank statements, invoices or revenue records, review a personalised offer, and receive funds in their business account. The company also promotes a "Refer a Borrower" programme.

South African small and medium-sized enterprises, particularly those with steady or recurring revenue, those waiting 30 to 90 days for customer payments, and businesses facing cash flow constraints or seasonal fluctuations.

Geography

South Africa.

Compiled by commissioned research from 1 cited public sources — announcements, filings, and press listed under research sources below.

Key figures

latest reported
Time from accepted offer to funds disbursedJan 202624-48 hours

Company-reported or press-reported figures, each dated to when it was claimed — not independently audited.

In the news

Research sources · 1

primary sources listed

1 public sources were cited for this profile; the first-party ones are listed here.

Frequently asked questions

What does Flow48 do?
Flow48 offers revenue-based and invoice financing to South African SMEs seeking working capital.
Who founded Flow48?
Flow48 was founded by Idriss Al Rifai in 2022.
Who are Flow48's investors?
Flow48's investors include Daphni, Evolution Ventures, First Circle, 212, 468 Capital, Blockchain Founders Fund, Breega, Endeavor Catalyst and 2 more.
How much funding has Flow48 raised?
Flow48 has disclosed $69M raised across 1 of its 3 known rounds.