- Kenyan wealth-tech startup Hisa has publicly launched after receiving regulatory approval from the Nairobi Securities Exchange and the Capital Markets Authority to launch its fractional shares trading platform. The Hisa app allows anyone in Kenya to invest in Kenyan listed stocks, US stocks and…
- Nigeria’s mobility fintech company Moove, Uber’s largest vehicle supply partner in EMEA, has raised US$30 million from a debut sukuk issuance to fund its expansion into the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Founded in 2019 by British-born Nigerians Ladi Delano and Jide Odunsi, Moove is democratising…
- Nigerian startup VENCO, which provides solutions to enhance living experiences in residential and commercial communities in Africa, has secured US$670,000 in an oversubscribed pre-seed funding round to scale its platform. Co-founded by Chude Osiegbu (CEO), Reagan Mbitiru (CTO) and Uzochukwu Alor (…
- Senegalese B2B marketplace Kwely has been named winner of the 2022 MEST Africa Challenge, securing US$50,000 in equity funding. Founded in Ghana in 2008 by serial entrepreneur Jorn Lyseggen, MEST is a pan-African software and entrepreneurship training programme, seed fund, and incubator helping to…
- African e-commerce will prosper through a verticalised approach, and startups operating in the space should seek to acknowledge and complement the strengths of existing retailers rather than reinventing the wheel, according to Deepankar Rustagi, founder and chief executive officer of Nigerian…
- Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and Ethiopia’s Ministry of Innovation and Technology (MinT) invite Ethiopian innovators to apply for a chance to participate in an acceleration programme and pitch competition, delegation programme in Japan. According to the UN World Population…
- Egyptian startup SIDEUP, which provides a suite of services for e-commerce businesses, has raised US$1.2 million in seed funding from regional and global investors to help it expand into Saudi Arabia. Launched in 2019, SIDEUP empowers e-commerce business owners with a suite of technology solutions…
- The Mastercard Foundation Africa Growth Fund (MFAGF), a fund of funds that works through African investment vehicles to support early-stage, growth-oriented SMEs on the continent, has launched with a committed US$200 million. The goal of the Mastercard Foundation Africa Growth Fund is to enable…
- Kenyan tech startups have higher rates of acceleration and are more diverse than their fellow tier one startup ecosystems, and are raising more funding than ever before. That is according to the Kenyan Startup Ecosystem Report 2022, released by startup-focused news and research company Disrupt…
- Seedstars has launched Seedstars Capital, an investment platform for emerging venture capital (VC) fund managers, with the support of xMultiplied, a Swiss based investment holding company. Seedstars Capital is an alternative investment platform specialising in emerging and frontier markets, which…
- The 2023 Grand Challenges Annual Meeting will take place in Dakar, Senegal, curated by the Institut Pasteur de Dakar (IPD), and focused on the healthcare space. Epidemic threats are increasing in their frequency, intensity, and severity – yet the world remains woefully exposed and unprepared. Grand…
- Egyptian startup OneOrder, a fintech-enabled restaurant management platform providing food supplies to hotels, restaurants and cafes, has announced the close of a US$3 million seed round to help it scale various aspects of its operations. Founded by leading Egyptian restaurateur Tamer Amer – the…
- Nairobi-based skincare startup Uncover has raised US$1 million in seed capital, which it will use to scale up its operations in Kenya and establish a presence across Africa. Uncover, co-founded by Sneha Mehta, Jade Oyateru and Catherine Lee, was born out of global VC accelerator Antler, and is a…
- Venture for Africa (VFA), an immersion programme and talent community created to enable top experienced local and global talent to transition into the African startup ecosystem, is accepting applications to the second cohort of its VFA Fintech Product Management Bootcamp. The VFA Fintech Product…
- South African data automation startup Synatic has raised a US$2.5 million seed extension round of funding to grow its footprint in the United States (US). Launched in 2017, Synatic has developed a low-code data automation platform that enables enterprises to iterate quickly and provides rapid time…
- Nigerian fintech software provider Appzone has rebranded to “Zone”, a regulated blockchain payment infrastructure company. Zone, a Google for Startups Accelerator alumnus, is on a mission to connect every monetary store of value using blockchain. By building Africa’s first layer-1 blockchain…
- South African early-stage venture capital firm 4Di Capital has announced the second closing of its new US$25 million seed fund – created in partnership with DotExe Ventures in Mauritius – with an undisclosed raise from Mauritian-based conglomerate IBL Group, via its investment vehicle, IBL Link…
- Nigerian fintech startup Vella Finance, which enables borderless transfers and remittances across the world powered by cryptocurrency, has launched additional payment tools to help business owners in Africa simplify their finances. Launched in beta late last year, Vella has since garnered over 20,…
- Global VC firm 500 Startups has partnered the Egyptian IT Industry Development Agency (ITIDA) to run various programmes as part of a comprehensive ecosystem strategy that also sees it open an office in the country and appoints Amal Enan as partner in Egypt. 500 Global is a venture capital firm with…
- Nigerian restaurant cloud operating system provider Orda has raised a US$3.4 million seed round to further digitise food businesses across the continent. Founded by Guy Futi, Fikayo Akinwale, Mark Edomwande, Kunle Ogungbamila, and Namir El-Khouri in 2020, Orda helps small-sized African restaurants…
- Kenya-based energy leasing company Solarise Africa has raised US$33.4 million in debt funding. Founded by Patrik Huber, Jan Albert Valk and Sakkie van Wijk, Solarise Africa is an energy leasing company for solar and other energy assets focusing on commercial and industrial clients (C&I). The…
- MENA-focused seed and early-stage venture capital firm Flat6Labs has launched Makers, a construction-tech innovation programme that aims to promote construction industry innovation through connecting and engaging with various stakeholders with extensive expertise. Launched in collaboration with…
- The African gaming industry is still extremely fragmented in that it is made up of a handful of small studios, but is nonetheless “the next big thing” given, among other things, the relative youth of the continent’s population. Data released last year from Newzoo, the leading provider of games…
- LoftyInc Capital Management, an early-stage African-focused venture capital firm, has announced the final close of its oversubscribed LoftyInc Afropreneurs Fund 3 (LAF3), which closed out at US$14.3 million. Founded in 2017, LoftyInc Capital Management is a venture capital firm based in Lagos that…
- Applications are open for the ygap Kenya Accelerator Programme, which helps ventures to refine and validate their business model, move towards financial sustainability, and grow the impact that they are having in their community. The ygap programme begins with a bootcamp and a needs-assessment, and…
- Ghanaian startup Africa Goodnest is an e-commerce and logistics platform that creates access to local and external markets, supports smallholder agricultural businesses, and distributes value-added agricultural products. Founded in 2021 by Bernice Yalley, Africa Goodnest is building a secure, user-…
- Morocco-based SmartProf, an online tutoring marketplace for school-aged students, has closed a pre-seed funding round of US$110,000 to help it expand across its home market and into the West African region. Founded in 2021 by Hamza and Mustapha Faiz, alongside Ali Faouiz, SmartProf aims to become a…
- Nigerian startup Autochek, an auto-tech platform making car ownership more accessible and affordable across Africa, has announced the launch of Autochek Financial Services, a new arm of the business that will focus on providing a range of vehicle financing solutions for consumers and businesses…
- Disrupt Africa has released a four-part podcast series on the African e-commerce and retail-tech space – how it works, what its dynamics are, and what is happening in the sector. Co-hosted by Gabriella Mulligan and Tom Jackson, Disrupt Podcast helps keep listeners in the loop on all that’s going on…
- South African fintech startup Revio, a subscription billing and payments platform that powers software-as-a-service (SaaS) businesses, has raised US$1.1 million in seed funding to launch new products, expand its team, and enter into new markets. Co-founded in 2019 by venture builder The Delta and a…
- Applications are now open for the Global Startup Awards Africa, which aims to give African startups global visibility and investment opportunities via the GIIG Africa Fund. The Global Startup Awards (GSA) – in partnership with the Global Innovation Initiative Group (GIIG) – returns to Africa for…
- Tanzanian software and applications startup UjuziNet Group has a variety of offerings, but its core brand is Mazao Hub, an SaaS-based digital agriculture and farm ERP platform to manage farmers, farming activities and control complex farm operations. Founded in 2021 by Adelard Josephat Urassa and…
- Nigerian fintech startup Pivo has closed a US$2 million seed funding round to upgrade existing products and build new ones to improve transaction management and payment reconciliation for supply chains. Formed by Ijeoma Akwiwu and Nkiru Amadi-Emina in July 2021 and launched in public beta in…
- The fourth Ocean Innovation Africa summit will take place in Cape Town, South Africa, on February 21-24, 2023 as the official summit of The Ocean Race Cape Town Stopover. Hosted by Ocean Innovation Africa alongside The Ocean Race Cape Town Stopover, the event aims to highlight opportunities for…
- Startup-focused news and research company Disrupt Africa will next month release its Kenyan Startup Ecosystem Report 2022, providing readers with a deep-dive into the country’s tech startup landscape. Since launching its research arm in 2016, Disrupt Africa has built up a significant portfolio of…
- Tanzania’s Ramani, which is building a cloud network of micro-distribution centres for Africa’s US$1 trillion consumer-packaged goods supply chain, has announced the close of its US$32million Series A funding round. Founded in 2019 by Iain Usiri, Calvin Usiri and Kibet Martin, Ramani is focused on…
- South African startup EaziCode is a programming tutoring company that offers one-on-one and group sessions to help users gain vital technical skills. Launched last year by Ngoni Mujuru, Tshegofatso Isaac and Thato Tshukudu, EaziCode connects aspiring coders with expert tutors. Its one-on-one…
- Founders from Tanzania, Kenya and Egypt have been named winners of the Africa’s Business Heroes (ABH) competition, a flagship philanthropic programme established by the Jack Ma Foundation to spotlight and support African entrepreneurs. The Africa’s Business Heroes prize competition is aimed at…
- South Africa’s SmartWage, an HR and communications technology startup, has rebranded to Jem as it zeroes in its focus on frontline workforces. Founded in 2019, SmartWage – now Jem – started off by allowing companies to provide their employees with instant access to a percentage of their salaries…
- Social impact investment firm Goodwell Investments has launched its EUR150 million (US$154 million) uMunthu II fund, aimed at igniting the growth of inclusive businesses in the region. Goodwell Investments is an impact investment firm focused on inclusive growth in sectors providing basic goods…
- Startups in Kenya and Tanzania have been offered the chance to scale their impact-driven companies and receive a grant investment of up to EUR100,000 (US$102,000) from develoPPP Ventures. On behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), implemented by DEG…
- Cairo-based startup Grinta, a fintech-enabled B2B tech platform digitising the pharmaceutical supply chain, has raised US$8 million seed funding round to scale its full-stack tech platform, expand its team and accelerate growth across the Egyptian market. Founded in 2021 by Mohamed Azab, Yosra Badr…
- The Owlet is rebranding! The Owlet, home of Owlet App and Owlet Online rebrands with exciting new looks and mind-blowing features. The Owlet was envisioned with an ultra-systemic goal to guide content creators, creatives and business owners in their strive for online visibility and business targets…
- Nigerian fintech startup Pivo has closed a US$2 million seed funding round to upgrade existing products and build new ones to improve transaction management and payment reconciliation for supply chains. Formed by Ijeoma Akwiwu and Nkiru Amadi-Emina in July 2021 and launched in public beta in…
- African startups solving pressing problems through innovation are invited to apply for the TechBridge accelerator programme, which provides US$200,000 in funding and other support. TechBridge describes itself as a community of startups, knowledge partners and investors aiming to enable startup…
- New York-based VC firm K50 Ventures has been building a community in Africa for more than a decade, even before it had a fund, with community leaders in Nigeria, Kenya, South Africa, and Ghana. K50 Ventures describes itself as a first-check investor for mission-driven founders “building a better…
- IFC has launched a new US$225 million platform to strengthen venture capital ecosystems in Africa, Middle East, Central Asia, and Pakistan, and invest in early-stage companies addressing development challenges through technological innovations in climate, healthcare, education, agriculture, e-…
- Rwandan startup HeptaPay allows users to instantly transfer money from their debit or credit card to mobile money accounts in East Africa. The origins of HeptaPay trace back to data analytics company, Hepta Analytics, whose founders – expatriates in Rwanda – sought to solve a personal finance…
- Kenyan e-pharmacy startup MYDAWA has launched a telehealth solution tailored to HIV prevention with funding from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Founded in 2017, MYDAWA enables consumers to conveniently purchase authentic high-quality medicines, health and wellness products through…
- African tech leaders, corporates and investors will connect at the London Stock Exchange for the sixth annual Africa Tech Summit London on November 24th. The annual Africa Tech Summit London will share insights from leading industry players including London Stock Exchange, DLA Piper, Alerzo, Deimos…
