Written by TOM JACKSON Nigerian auto-tech startup Autochek has expanded to Kenya and Uganda after acquiring the Cheki platforms for each of those countries from ROAM Africa. Autochek aims to build digital solutions that will enhance and enable a seamless and safe automotive commerce experience across Africa, starting with Nigeria and Ghana. It plans to use…
Written by TOM JACKSON Manufacturing tech leader Guidewheel, which began life as Safi in the Kenyan capital Nairobi, is targeting faster expansion in the United States (US) after raising Series A funding. Disrupt Africa reported in July Guidewheel, which was based out of Nairobi as Safi from 2018-2020, had closed a US$8 million Series A funding round. A…
Written by TOM JACKSON Egyptian fintech startup MNT-Halan has secured a US$120 million investment by major global and regional growth investors to further develop its product and expand internationally. Having begun life as a ride-hailing app for two- and three-wheeler vehicles back in 2018, MNT-Halan has morphed into a super app of sorts, and in the process…
Written by Michael Ajifowoke Within four years, Wave has gone from a spinoff from Asia and Africa-focused cheap remittance company, Sendwave, to a mobile money service provider worth $1.7 billion; the latest unicorn startup in Africa and the first in the French-speaking region. The billion-dollar valuation comes after it raised $200 million in a Series A round…
Kenyan fintech startup Pezesha raises 7-figure seed extension round for African expansion Written by TOM JACKSON Kenyan fintech startup Pezesha, which is building scalable lending infrastructure for SMEs and institutions, has closed a seven-figure seed extension round as it looks to expand further across the continent. Founded in late 2016, Pezesha has created a holistic digital financial…
These open banking startups are driving the next wave of fintech innovation in Africa Written by TOM JACKSON All of a sudden, open banking is a very real phenomenon in Africa, with entrepreneurs and investors alike betting on the long-term opportunities within the nascent space. First of all, what is it? Open banking is a…
Ugandan e-logistics startup Ridelink raises $150k pre-seed funding round Written by TOM JACKSON Ugandan e-logistics startup Ridelink has raised US$150,000 in pre-seed funding to help it scale operations. Launched in 2017, Ridelink is an e-logistics platform that connects SMEs to a network of transport operators at the click of a button. So far it has served over…
What 377 Y Combinator pitches will teach you about startups Written by Natasha Mascarenhas Along with a cadre of other TechCrunch folks, I spent this week extremely focused on one event: Y Combinator. The elite accelerator announced a staggering 377 startups as its Summer 2021 cohort. We covered every single on-the-record startup that presented and…
Founders Factory and G-Force launch Seed program for climate-focused startups Written by Mike Butcher UK tech accelerator Founders Factory is joining forces with a European counterpart to launch the Founders Factory Sustainability Seed program. Launched in partnership with G-Force (the G is for Green) based out of Bratislava, Slovakia, the program will look to invest in and accelerate…
African energy startups to benefit from SIMA’s $68,000,000 Energy Access Relief Fund Written By Joan Aimuengheuwa With a focus on ensuring adequate decentralisation of clean energy globally, Social Investment Managers and Advisors’ (SIMA) has made its $68,000,000 Energy Access Relief Fund (EARF) accessible to startups in the energy sector. Smaller to mid-sized energy companies across sub-Saharan…
Zowasel, a Nigerian agritech startup, has received $100,000 in funding from Guinness and Promasidor. At the UN World Food Programme Zero Hunger Sprint, Nigerian agri-tech firm Zowasel received US$100,000 in funding from Guinness Nigeria and Promasidor Nigeria, a large pan-African consumer packaged food maker. Zowasel is an agricultural technology startup that is working to create a sustainable…
Egyptian e-commerce startup FwRun acquired by Saudi logistics company Written by TOM JACKSON Egyptian e-commerce solutions provider FwRun has been acquired by Saudi Arabian last mile delivery and logistics firm Diggipacks as the latter looks to expand its presence in the Egyptian market. Founded in 2019, FwRun provides fulfillment, delivery, and warehousing services to e-commerce companies….
Startups should look to state-of-the-art tech to tackle diseases affecting women Written by Shahar Keinan Startups devoted to reproductive and women’s health are on the rise. However, most of them deal with women’s fertility: birth control, ovulation and the inability to conceive. The broader field of women’s health remains neglected. Historically, most of our understanding…
SA fintech startup Payflex acquired by listed Australian firm plotting African expansion Written by TOM JACKSON South African buy now pay later fintech startup Payflex has been acquired by Australia Securities Exchange (ASX)-listed Zip as the latter takes it global expansion plans into Africa. Founded in 2018, Payflex allows consumers to shop now and pay later, interest-free….
Kenya’s MotiSure launches API-powered insurtech platform Written by TOM JACKSON Kenyan startup MotiSure has launched an API-powered insurtech platform that provides personal accident cover for commuters and riders through embedding insurance in tickets and other points of sale within mobility. MotiSure was co-founded this year by Joel Macharia, Jane Njau and Thuita Wachira after they sampled…
Nigeria tops as Y Combinator S21 receives the highest number of African startups so far Written by Joan Aimuengheuwa It’s an interesting fact to reiterate that the number of African startups participating in Y Combinator’s 2021 summer batch has increased beyond the usual. Compared to other cohorts, the highest number of African startups participating in the programme…
LoftyInc Capital, a Pan-African Venture Capital firm, has launched its third fund, valued at $10 million, for African tech startups LoftyInc Capital, a pan-African venture capital firm, announced today the launch of its third fund, LoftyInc Afropreneurs Fund 3, with a $10 million investment target for African tech startups. The firm has completed its first…
Zambian startup Dawa Health plans regional expansion for maternal health-focused digital platform Written By TOM JACKSON Zambia’s Dawa Health, an e-health platform currently focused on maternal health, is planning expansion into nearby countries for its digital health platform empowering rural mothers. Founded in 2018 as a medical hardware startup, Dawa Health prototyped a wearable device to monitor…
TikTok owner ByteDance buys a top virtual reality hardware startup Written by Lucas Matney TikTok parent company ByteDance seems to be looking to one-up Facebook anywhere it can. After taking over the mantle of the most downloaded social media app in the world with TikTok, ByteDance is coming for Facebook’s moonshot, buying up its own virtual…
Eyptian Startup,SWVL expands into Europe, Latin America, and others Swvl, an Egyptian mobility startup, has expanded into Europe, Latin America, and Asia through the acquisition of Shotl, a mass transit SaaS platform Swvl, an Egyptian startup that provides transformative mass transit and shared mobility solutions, has announced a definitive agreement to purchase a controlling interest…
SA prop-tech startup Flow reports impressive growth with further investment on the horizon Written by TOM JACKSON South African prop-tech startup Flow is reporting impressive growth figures as it prepares to take on board further investment to supercharge its development. Founded by Daniel Levy and Gil Sperling, Flow goes straight to the source of the largest social…
A $2 billion fintech startup has become Africa’s fastest unicorn Written By Alexander Onukwue In less than three years, OPay has gone from a curious startup known for its motorcycles in Lagos, Nigeria, to a financial services company worth $2 billion. The latest valuation comes after it raised $400 million from a round led by SoftBank,…
Moroccan B2B e-commerce startup Chari.ma raises funding, acquires mobile credit platform Written by TOM JACKSON Chari.ma, a B2B e-commerce app allowing traditional proximity store owners in Morocco to order products and have them delivered, has closed a round of funding and announced the acquisition of mobile credit book application Karny.ma. Founded last year by husband…
South African e-health startup, Quro Medical, receives investment from Life Healthcare Group Writen by Joan Aimuengheuwa Fostering its goal to provide home-based medical services in South Africa, Quro Medical has raised an undisclosed funding amount from Life Healthcare Group. The Johannesburg-based digital health startup leverages technology to monitor the health of patients in real-time. Via its…
Nigerian fintech startup Awabah raises $200k, joins Techstars London accelerator Written By TOM JACKSON Nigerian fintech startup Awabah raised US$200,000 in angel funding in July, which it has followed up by banking another US$120,000 after joining the Techstars London accelerator programme. Launched last year by Tunji Andrews, Tina Ajishebiyawo, and Gboyega Olatunde, Awabah is a digital platform…
New South Africa startup, Fanfire uses NFTs to help sports franchises engage with fans Written by TOM JACKSON South African startup Fanfire has launched to help sports franchises engage with their fans using non-fungible tokens (NFTs). An NFT is a unit of data stored on the blockchain that certifies a digital asset to be unique…
African fintech startups among 11 selected for Mastercard Start Path programme Written By TOM JACKSON South Africa’s Karri Payments and Kenya’s Kwara are among 11 fintech startups from around the world selected to join the Mastercard Start Path global network to scale innovation. Mastercard’s six-month Start Path programme is a springboard to help the best and brightest…
Kenya’s MarketForce raises further $100k funding from Harambeans Prosperity Fund Written by TOM JACKSON Kenyan retail-tech startup had added an additional US$100,000 in funding from the Harambeans Prosperity Fund to the US$2 million pre-Series A round it announced last month. Co-founded in 2018 by Tesh Mbaabu and Mesongo Sibuti, MarketForce enables consumer brands to optimise how they deliver…
Egyptian car parts marketplace Odiggo raises $2.2m expansion funding Written By TOM JACKSON Egyptian startup Odiggo, a digital marketplace for automotive spare parts, has closed a US$2.2 million funding round to help it continue to expand into new markets. Founded in 2018 by Ahmed Omar and Ahmed Nasser, Odiggo links customers with vendors in order to purchase…
Mobility startup Plentywaka picks up $1.2M seed, acquires Ghana’s Stabus Written by Tage Kene-Okafor Lagos and Toronto-based mobility startup Plentywaka has raised a $1.2 million seed round to scale its operations on the back of leaving the Techstars Toronto accelerator program last month. Canadian-based VC firm The Xchange led the round, SOSV and Shock Ventures participated, while…