Paylend, a Kenyan fintech startup, has announced a $2 million seed funding round led by Next Chymia Consulting HK Limited. Paylend’s goal is to assist African SMEs in overcoming the challenge of continuous finance access, as well as to bridge the data gap between consumers and products and services. Paylend’s strategy includes collecting last-mile customer…
The African Development Bank (AfDB) has announced the approval of $12 million in investment funds to support African tech entrepreneurs through the Janngo Start-Up Fund. Janngo Capital manages the Janngo Start-Up Fund, which develops, grows, and invests in technology start-ups with proven business models and a positive social impact. Its primary focus areas are agribusiness, financial…
After seven years of producing electronic gadgets through his company, Imose Technologies, Osayi Izedonmwen took a break to pursue an idea he had been toying with for some time — an edtech startup, Teesas, which now offers video classes and other digital educational material to learners in Nigeria. Teesas, which was founded less than two…
Africa’s startup ecosystem rebounded in 2021, bringing in a record $4 billion before the end of the year, reflecting a surge in investor interest in the continent’s rapidly growing tech marketplace. Africa now has seven unicorns, according to Wee Tracker: Jumia, Interswitch, Flutterwave, Andela, Wave, OPay, and Chipper Cash. Five of these have become unicorns…
Planet42, a startup that fights transportation inequality by putting cars in the hands of people who are unfairly ignored by banks, has just announced a $30 million round of equity and debt financing. The $6 million equity round was led by South African conglomerate Naspers, with participation from other existing investors including Bolt founders Martin…
After securing $31 million in Series B funding, Nigerian mobility tech startup Metro Africa Xpress Inc. (MAX) plans to expand into more African markets as it works to formalize the continent’s transportation sector. The startup told TechCrunch that the funding will be used to expand into Ghana and Egypt by the end of the first…
African Blockchain Lab, based in Nigeria, has received a US$6 million pre-Series A investment to help fund the launch of its crypto wallet VIBRA. African Blockchain Lab, founded by blockchain venture studio Everest Ventures Group, is a blockchain technology company and the creator of the African crypto app VIBRA. VIBRA provides an easy way for…
Paymob, an Egyptian fintech startup, has partnered with ride-hailing giant Uber to expand payment options on the Uber app, with the goal of financially integrating a larger base of Egyptian drivers and riders. Paymob, founded in 2015 by Islam Shawky, Alain El Hajj, and Mostafa Menessy, is an infrastructure technology enabler that offers payment solutions…
One of Africa’s most active early-stage tech investors, Nigeria-based Ventures Platform, has announced the first close of a US$40 million pan-African fund that will expand its portfolio and double down on winners. Since its inception in 2016, Ventures Platform has served as a partner and conduit for international funds and stakeholders looking for a dependable…
Alitheia IDF, Africa’s first and only women-led and women-focused private equity fund, has announced the final close of its US$100 million fund, which it claims is the continent’s largest gender-inclusive private equity fund. Alitheia IDF, led by principal partners Polo Leteka and Tokunboh Ishmael, invests in early-stage companies in six African countries: Nigeria, South Africa,…
Offline test preparation centers in Nigeria have been providing after-school guidance and tutoring to students attempting to pass entrance examinations for many years. Edtech platforms such as Edukoya have emerged with the goal of bringing these models online while keeping costs low for students. The Lagos and London-based startup, which creates online education content and…
Salaam Somali Bank has set aside US$4 million for Somali entrepreneurs to be distributed over two years beginning next year in an effort to jumpstart economic growth. Salaam Somali Bank, Somalia’s first privately-owned bank, was established in 2009 and now has more than 20 branches throughout the country. Through specialized, zero-interest micro-loans, the Salaam Entrepreneurs…
WaffarX, an Egyptian cashback marketplace, has raised an undisclosed but multi-million US dollar funding round to help it grow its user base and geographical presence. WaffarX, which was founded in 2018 by Ezz Fayek, Mahmoud Montasser, and Ahmed Kamal, uses cutting-edge technology to distribute cashback rewards, allowing shoppers to save money on every dollar spent….
Cairo Angels, an Egypt-focused angel investor network, has announced the first close of the Cairo Angels Syndicate Fund (CASF), a Delaware-based angel fund that will invest between $100,000 and $250,000 in Middle Eastern and African startups. Cairo Angels was Egypt’s first formal network of angel investors when it launched, and it has since become one…
Sympl, an Egyptian “buy now, pay later” (BNPL) startup, has raised a seed round of $6 million to support its nationwide expansion and reach the country’s 49 million bank card holders. Sympl, founded by Yasmine Henna, Mohamed El-Feky, and Karim Tawfik, launched its checkout platform in October through an exclusive partnership with leading Apple reseller…
SendChamp, a Nigerian startup, has raised $100,000 in funding to bridge the communications gap for African businesses, with the round’s close marking the public launch of the startup’s offering. SendChamp, which was founded by Goodness Kayode and Damilola Olotu and has been in stealth mode for the last eight months, aims to improve customer relations…
Entersekt, a South African fintech that has developed technology that protects millions of financial services customers worldwide, has received funding from US-based private equity firm Accel-KKR to accelerate its roadmap and fuel expansion into new markets. Entersekt, a global payment security company headquartered in Cape Town, is a global authentication market innovator, with recent market…
CinetPay, an Ivory Coast-based startup that provides a digital finance platform that allows merchants in Francophone Africa to accept and make payments seamlessly, has raised a US$2.4 million seed funding round from 4DX Ventures and Flutterwave to expand its sales and marketing efforts across nine markets in West and Central Africa. CinetPay has processed over…
uLesson, a Nigerian ed-tech startup, has raised $15 million in Series B funding, which it will use to expand its team and improve services for its growing community of African learners. uLesson, founded in 2019 by serial entrepreneur Sim Shagaya, provides live online classes with expert tutors, video lessons, and personalized live homework help for…
Nigeria received the largest share of the $4 billion in startup funding that Africa, in particular, attracted in 2021, with $1.37 billion. Four countries emerged at the top, as expected: Nigeria, South Africa, Egypt, and Kenya. They accounted for 80% of total capital raised on the continent up until the end of November, with Nigeria…
Filkhedma, an Egyptian home services marketplace, has raised a bridge round of funding from Cairo Angels in preparation for the announcement of a “significant milestone.” FilKhedma is an online marketplace for home maintenance and improvement services such as plumbing, carpentry, electricity, air conditioning, painting, and appliances, founded in 2014 by Omar Ramadan. Before receiving one…
Kwara, a Kenyan startup that is assisting in the transformation of traditional savings cooperatives into modern digital banks, has raised a US$4 million seed funding round to advance the development of its neobank app ahead of its upcoming release. Kwara, founded in 2018 by Cynthia Wandia and David Hwan, is a digital banking platform that…
Plstka, a waste management startup based in Egypt’s delta region, has received seed funding to help it scale. Plstka, a company founded earlier this year by Ahmed Elnagar and Mahmoud Youssef, has created an app that rewards customers for recycling their solid waste. People can use the app to exchange waste for discounts and coupon…
TradeDepot, a B2B e-commerce and embedded finance platform based in Nigeria, has raised US$110 million in an equity and debt Series B funding round to support the delivery of buy-now-pay-later services to five million SME retailers as well as the further expansion of its merchant platform across the continent. TradeDepot, which was founded in 2016,…
Herconomy is leveraging fintech to empower women, from creating a women-focused social media community to planning Africa’s largest financial services platform for women. Women make up half of the world’s population, but they face greater barriers to financial products and services that can improve their well-being and economic empowerment. According to UNCTAD, based on World…
Pariti, a Kenya-based community-led marketplace that is building digital infrastructure for startup ecosystems in emerging markets, has raised $2.85 million in seed funding, the company confirmed today to TechCrunch. Harlem Capital, based in the United States, led the round. It is the first deal in Africa for the diversity-focused fund, which raised $134 million for…
BeXel, an Egyptian cloud-based inspection management software company, has raised a six-figure US dollar round of funding in order to expand into Saudi Arabia and other GCC countries. beXel is a SaaS digital cloud-based inspection management software that focuses on industrial services such as energy, oil and gas, and construction. It was founded in early…
Flex Finance, a mobile ecosystem that helps MSMEs and solo entrepreneurs better manage and track their daily business expenses and finances, is a Nigerian fintech startup that has raised a six-figure US dollar pre-seed funding round to support its growth. Flex enables businesses to digitize their day-to-day operations through a simple, user-friendly mobile platform. The…
Raseedi, an Egyptian fintech startup that helps users make cheaper calls, pay less, and get advance credit, has raised a pre-Series A funding round of $850,000 to help it build on its impressive early traction. Raseedi is a multi-purpose fintech app that helps anyone in its community communicate cheaper, pay less, and pay later for…
MYDAWA, a Kenyan e-health startup, has been awarded a US$1.2 million grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to increase access to Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) services through its e-pharmacy model, thereby aiding the fight against HIV/AIDS in Kenya. MYDAWA, which was founded in 2017, enables consumers to purchase authentic high-quality medicines, health and wellness…