- Mauritius-based fintech startup Finclusion Group has secured funding from the Cairo Angels Syndicate Fund (CASF), a micro venture capital fund that invests in early-stage startups in the Middle East and Africa. Finclusion Group is an Africa-focused fintech platform building out a full neobank…
- South African e-commerce platform Shopstar has secured third round funding as it begins the next phase in its strategy to scale. Founded in 2014, Shopstar is a cloud-based e-commerce platform that enables local entrepreneurs to build online stores and grow their businesses by offering easy to use…
- Nigerian digital banking startup Grey has announced the expansion of its service to East Africa, starting with Kenya, in partnership with fintech company Cellulant. Launched in 2021 by Idorenyin Obong and Femi Aghedo, who wanted to help Nigerians easily exchange to local currency and access the…
- Nigerian fintech startup Sproutly is a virtual banking app for children under the age of 17, providing digital savings products and a debit card with built-in parental control. Founded in June 2021 by Pierre Nwoke, Maxwell Agu and Prince Akachi, Sproutly provides kids with an app-based savings…
- Moroccan logistics and digital freight startup CloudFret has raised US$1 million in funding to help it expand further in African and European markets. Founded by Driss Jabar in 2021, CloudFret is a transport and logistics company that connects truck loaders and carriers. The platform uses…
- African agri-tech startups are invited to apply for the GoGettaz Agripreneur Prize, which aims to find Africa’s brightest young agri-food entrepreneurs and will award US$50,000 in cash to each of two winners. The GoGettaz Agripreneur Prize is searching for agribusinesses that bring technology,…
- AfricInvest, a leading investment platform active in multiple alternative asset classes including private equity, venture capital, private credit and listed equities, has announced the final close of its AfricInvest Fund IV with total commitments of US$411 million. Over the last 25 years,…
- Egyptian online health and wellness startup Esaal has raised a US$1.7 million seed round of funding to help it expand further across the MENA region. Founded in 2018, Esaal connects users to certified experts in physical and mental wellness fields like medical, psychiatry, fitness, diet and…
- The sixth edition of Lagos Startup Week will take place on July 25-30 at the Federal Palace Hotel on Victoria Island, bringing together founders, investors, corporates and media. For the first time, Lagos Startup Week will be hybrid in nature, with the first three days being virtual and satellite…
- South African ed-tech startup FoondaMate has raised US$2 million in seed funding as it aims to close global education inequality gaps using its AI-powered learning platform. Founded by Dacod Magagula and Tao Boyle in August 2020, FoondaMate has built a chat-based, AI-powered learning bot that helps…
- Nigerian cryptocurrency exchange Yellow Card has added Ivory Coast to the list of 16 countries in which it operates as it continues to expand across the continent. Formed in 2018 and launched in Nigeria in 2019, Yellow Card makes it easy for anyone, anywhere in Africa, to buy cryptocurrencies like…
- Untapped Global has raised a US$10.3 million debt and equity pre-seed round to help it scale its smart asset financing model, which finances revenue-generating assets for entrepreneurs and SMEs in Africa and Latin America. Based in San Francisco, Africa, and Europe with an all-female investment…
- Up to GBP40 million (US$50 million) in innovation funding is to be made available to help combat climate change through clean energy access for communities in sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia and Indo-Pacific regions. Announced as part of Innovate UK’s Energy Catalyst Round 9 and 10 funding cycles,…
- Moroccan e-health startup Blink Pharma has raised an undisclosed amount of funding from Azur Innovation Fund to help it expand its operations and launch new products. Launched in 2020 by Ali Sami and Adil Bertul, Blink Pharma has built a B2B marketplace that allows pharmacists, laboratories and…
- African startups are invited to apply for the Last Mile Money Accelerator programme, which offers funding and support to startups serving last-mile communities with digital financial services and cash-in/cash-out innovations. After a successful first accelerator programme in 2021, IDEO Last Mile…
- Honoris United Universities, the first and largest pan-African network of private higher education institutions in Africa, releases its inaugural impact report. The report highlights Honoris’ commitment to Education for Impact for students, their families and communities across Africa and assesses…
- Cryptocurrency is one of the most significant innovations of our time. It’s changing how people and businesses worldwide think about money, and it’s connected everyone, from billionaires to average consumers. However, despite the potential for crypto to be an integral part of the future, many…
- Nigerian startup Field Intelligence has been accepted into the global Endeavor network, gaining access to various support services to help their companies scale. The Endeavor initiative works to catalyse long-term economic growth by selecting, mentoring, and accelerating the best high-impact…
- The Kenya-based Innovate Now, Africa first assistive technology (AT) accelerator, has announced its fifth cohort of innovators. A partnership between Global Disability Innovation (GDI) Hub, ICT Norway, Norad, and Kilimanjaro Blind Trust Africa to support digital AT ventures in Africa, Innovate Now…
- South African agri-tech startup IQ Logistica, initially launched as a service provider to government, is establishing itself as a platform that helps farmers scale their businesses more efficiently having recently pivoted. Formed in 2014 as a technology services provider to government for digital…
- Egyptian e-health startup Doxx has raised a US$1.5 million seed funding round to continue building out its fully integrated digital healthcare platform, which connects medical professionals and institutional healthcare providers to support a patient’s medical journey. Founded in 2021, Doxx has…
- African hubs network AfriLabs has launched the AfriLabs Academy in a bid to equip startup ecosystem enablers with the necessary skills and training to support African startups. AfriLabs is a network organisation supporting over 340 innovation centres across 52 African countries, founded upon the…
- Nigerian startup Jamit is a “social audio network” that helps African podcasters produce their content and connects them with listeners. Founded in 2018 by Stan Agbadugo and Ike Orizu, Jamit describes itself as “the African podcaster’s platform, built with love from Africa, for African podcast…
- South Korean government’s largest accelerator program for foreign startups K-Startup Grand Challenge (KSGC), is inviting applications from startups and entrepreneurs from around the world for its 2022 edition. KSGC is hosted by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups (MSS) and organized by the National…
- Kenyan e-health startup Zuri Health has raised a US$1.3 million pre-seed round of funding to grow its product offerings and expand into new markets. Disrupt Africa reported in January 2021 on the launch of Zuri Health, a virtual, mobile-first, on-demand healthcare platform that helps patients…
- Kenya’s Bamba, a mobile-first enterprise software for micro-merchants in Africa, has secured US$3.2m in seed funding to scale its app and build out its team. Founded in 2022 by serial entrepreneur and investor Bastian Gotter, Bamba provides a mobile application allowing small businesses to easily…
- South African emergency response platform RapidDeploy has raised equity funding from Nedbank CIB, the corporate and investment banking division of the Nedbank Group, one of the four largest banking groups in South Africa. Founded by Steven Raucher and Brett Meyerowitz, RapidDeploy is an open and…
- Edves is an Edtech with high-level adoption and usage within the EdTech and digital infrastructure space in Africa, having over 1,200 schools, 22K+ Educators, 130K+ parents and 250K+ students in 6 African Countries. The leading SaaS company has expanded to 4 African countries in the last 6 months…
- Kenyan fintech startup FlexPay has raised funding from the Cairo Angels Syndicate Fund as it looks to supercharge its growth and help more people avoid debt. FlexPay is an online and offline payment gateway that allows merchants to offer interest-free targeted savings to their customers in Africa.…
- Nigerian fintech startup Bridgecard has raised a US$440,000 pre-seed funding round to expand its user base and build out its platform. Co-founded by Owumi Festus and Tunde Adewole, Bridgecard merges a user’s cards, bank accounts and fintech wallets into one card and an app, allowing users to…
- Amber Group April Recap 2022 Corporate News Approved as a member of the International Swaps and Derivatives Association (ISDA). Managing Partner Annabelle Huang named on Makinsey’s annual Top Women Innovators list. Product Development and Partnerships Partnered with The Dodge NFT and PleasrDAO to…
- Egyptian startup Teegara, a B2B e-commerce platform focused on household and FMCG products, has raised an undisclosed bridge round led by the Alexandria Business Angels Network. Founded in 2019, by Ahmad Kayyali and Nader Ibrahim with first investee Ahmed Samir, Teegara is a B2B2C e-commerce…
- South African Breweries (SAB) in partnership with the SAB Foundation has established the SAB SHARP Awards, targeting innovators and social entrepreneurs with innovative ideas or prototypes that empower women in at-risk communities. The SAB SHARP Awards is looking for solutions that either assist…
- Kenyan startup TopUp Mama, which provides African restaurants with access to supplies, financial services and business management tools, has closed a US$1.7 million seed funding round to accelerate its growth. Founded by Njavwa Mutambo, Emilie Blauwhoff and Andrew Kibe in 2021, TopUp Mama is a one-…
- Nigerian startup NucleusIS has launched a new platform that allows individuals and businesses to buy health insurance on credit. Founded in 2019, NucleusIS has built a robust enterprise technology base for health insurance companies and care providers, which has so far on-boarded seven clients.…
- The Social & Inclusive Business Camp (SIBC) has begun searching for its sixth cohort of African entrepreneurs that are leading developing, high-impact companies. The SIBC programme is supported by the FDA Campus and implemented by a consortium of international partners – I&P Conseil,…
- Kenyan startup Abantu AI has developed a deep learning technology in the field of natural language processing (NLP) that translates from major world languages to indigenous African languages. Developed by James Mwaniki, also CEO of MoVAS, a company that offers micro-lending services to telecom…
- SINGAPORE, 11 May 2022 — Amber Group, the leading global digital asset platform, today announced its entry into the metaverse with the launch of Openverse, a Web3 enablement platform for creators, brands and businesses. A culmination of Amber Group’s multi-disciplinary expertise in digital…
- Applications open in English and French for fourth year of the Africa’s Business Heroes (ABH) prize competition ABH annually awards 10 outstanding entrepreneurs from across Africa with a share of a US$1.5 million grant Season 3 of the ABH Show featuring the Top 10 Heroes from the 2021…
- The newly-rebranded VC firm Rali_cap has reached a first close of US$20 million of a US$30 million fund that will invests in B2B and API-first fintech startups in Africa and other emerging markets. Co-founded by Hayden Simmons, who worked for the likes of Juvo, Migo and Facebook before launching…
- Nigerian startup Vendly has launched a platform that allows users to send and receive money using just their social media handles. Launched in December, Vendly aims to help social media users monetise their platforms, allowing them to send and receive money PayPal-style. It does this by…
- South African payments solutions startup Wallettec says its mybux digital voucher platform is now operating in 14 African countries and is processing over 20 million vouchers a month. Launched in Cape Town in 2013, Wallettec is a mobile money integration company that has provided mobile payment…
- The Migration Entrepreneurship Prize, a programme designed for socially driven startups with a mission to enhance the inclusion of migrants in the Middle East and Africa, has opened applications for its second cohort. In a partnership between Seedstars and The Peace and Human Rights Division of…
- Nigerian trade technology startup Norebase, which is building a single platform for businesses to start, scale and operate in any African country, has secured a US$1 million pre-seed funding round to accelerate its growth. Launched in September 2021, Norebase provides a single digital…
- The American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) is now accepting applications from aspiring social entrepreneurs worldwide for the first round of its Idea Lab incubator, a new programme that extends the reach of the ASME Innovation Showcase (ISHOW) hardware accelerator platform. Founded in…
- Nigerian fintech startup Kwaba, which helps low and middle income earners to split their annual rent into convenient monthly installments, has secured a pre-seed round of funding to help it expand across Nigeria and Africa. Founded by Obinna Molokwu in January 2020, Kwaba is a digital platform…
- Draper Startup House (DSH) has established its first location in Southern Africa in Lusaka, Zambia through a partnership with BongoHive, the country’s first technology and innovation hub. Founded in Singapore in 2018 by Vikram Bharati as Tribe Theory, a hostel concept for digital nomads, Draper…
- The FT x Cardano Blockchain Challenge is sourcing ventures building on Cardano or interested in leveraging the Cardano blockchain platform and community, offering selected ventures access to a bootcamp and an accelerator programme. The FT x Cardano Blockchain Challenge is a collaboration between…
- South African logistics startup GoMetro has secured a ZAR16.3 million (US$1 million) seed extension round to accelerate its growth, bolster its commercial team and rapidly expand into the South African, UK and American markets. GoMetro is a mobility management platform that enables public…
- Kenyan startup Phindor has launched a next generation shop assistant system that employs artificial intelligence (AI) to help local businesses digitise record management, data collection and storage. Phindor began life as a website helping users find and compare pricing for school items, but…
