Omar Cissé – Founder and CEO of InTouch

Omar Cissé is a Senegalese businessman and investor with a special interest in fintech and a passion for actively developing the African entrepreneurship ecosystem. Cissé is the founder and CEO of InTouch, a fintech startup located in Dakar. He also co-founded Teranga Capital, an investment fund launched to support SMEs in Senegal. Cissé is known for his excellent strategy development skills and for his deep understanding of technology in the financial sector. He is also highly regarded for his work in supporting Senegalese SMEs in their business ventures.

About Omar Cissé

Background

After graduating with a degree in New Technologies at the Ecole Supérieure Polytechnique de Dakar in 2000, Cissé gained experience in the technology sector as co-founder and managing director of 2Si, a software engineering and mobile solutions company. In 2007 he furthered his studies at Institut Supérieure de Management where he achieved an international MBA.

In 2010, he created CTIC Dakar, the first and foremost business incubator in the French-speaking regions of West Africa dedicated to supporting IT and mobile technology entrepreneurs. Cissé co-founded Teranga Capital and founded InTouch SA in 2014. Teranga Capital offers innovative financial solutions for Senegal based SMEs with financing needs of between $85,000 and $340,000 and strong growth potential. InTouch SA is a fintech startup specializing in digital payments on web and mobile platforms with special focus on simplifying transactions.

Location

Omar Cissé resides in Dakar, Senegal from where he conducts his business activities and investments. This is also where he received his education. Cissé is committed to developing Senegal’s economic viability.

Investments

The most significant investments made by Omar Cissé include:

The Lion Club – An SME specializing in producing and marketing food for babies.
SetTIC – A business waste treatment company that takes care of waste like electronic and electrical equipment and recycles special waste.
Teranga Automobiles – A vehicle repair and maintenance company that offers a variety of electromagnetic and mechanical diagnostic services.
LAfricaMobile – A mobile marketing company.
SENAR – Les Delices de Lysa – An agricultural marketing company specializing in products like corn, cashews and peanuts.
Fire Fly Media – An advertising agency focused on the Senegalese public transport sector, particularly buses.
Fari Fima Cosmetics – A young company that develops cosmetics products.
LA Vivriere – An SME that processes and markets local cereals.
XOOM Wireless – An internet service provider located in Gambia.
Matisse – A catering complex situated in an economic hub in Dakar.
KOOD – An ice-cream and frozen yogurt production and marketing company.

In the News

In an interview for Le Point Africa conducted in April 2020 Omar Cissé discussed the potential impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the financial sector, focusing on the accelerating digitization of payments across the African continent due to the pandemic. In the interview, Cissé explores the evolution of mobile payments and the role fintech companies and the pandemic are playing in this. In late 2019, AllAfrica published an in-depth article about Teranga Capital and Cissé and the investments they are making in low-end startups with a goal of embedding regional strategies that will bring about economic growth.