Black Swan, a Mauritius-based FinTech startup, has won the MEST Africa Challenge (MAC) 2025, a pan-African pitch competition focused on next-generation financial solutions.

• Black Swan will receive US $50,000 in equity investment and a chance to pilot commercial solutions with Absa business units.
• The startup builds infrastructure that transforms fragmented consumer and MSME data into real-time credit intelligence, enabling lenders to conduct instant affordability assessments.
• According to MEST Africa's Portfolio Advisor, Ashwin Ravichandran, this year's applicants showed stronger technical depth and readiness to scale across borders, with FinTech now powering sectors like agriculture, energy, and trade.