The Latest from Tage Kene-Okafor
Egyptian health tech Yodawy raises $16M, backed by Delivery Hero Ventures
Without proper government-led public health initiatives, healthcare expenditures, including insurance and pharmaceutical drugs, can burden individuals and households. In recent years, private institut
Sendmarc nabs $7M to offer email protection from phishing attacks and email impersonation
Over 90% of cybercrime activities that lead to financial fraud or identity theft start with an email impersonation, commonly known as phishing and spoofing. Several platforms offer individuals and bus
Partech hits first close of largest Africa-focused fund, at €245M
Partech, the global VC firm with several funds, has reached first close of Partech Africa II at €245 million (~$263 million), making it the largest Africa-focused fund yet. The firm, which focus
SunFi aims to be the fastest way for Nigerians to find, finance and manage solar
SunFi, the Nigerian clean tech startup that connects people and businesses who want solar energy access to payment plans that match their needs, has raised $2.325 million in seed funding. The self-des
South African digital lender Lulalend to launch banking product off the back of $35M Series B
In most African countries, access to credit remains limited for many small businesses, with the reasons ranging from the inability to pay collateral and lack of credit history to unfavorable lending c
Egyptian financial services provider MNT-Halan valued at $1B in $400M funding
Egyptian fintech and e-commerce ecosystem MNT-Halan has raised up to $400 million in equity and debt financing from local and global investors as it continues to serve underbanked and unbanked custome
InstaDeep’s acquisition is a classic case of an African startup gone global
This January, Germany’s largest vaccine maker BioNTech announced that it had agreed to acquire Tunisian-born and London-headquartered AI startup InstaDeep for up to £562 million, including a perfor
How African startups raised venture capital in 2022
Earlier this month, we reported that investors’ sentiments surrounding venture capital activity going into this were more reserved than upbeat. Investors believe the market correction, which caught
Jumia’s investors rethink their stakes — for better and worse
Baillie Gifford, the Edinburgh-based asset management firm long known to have a penchant for pre-IPO tech companies, has reduced its shares in African e-commerce giant Jumia, per the latest 13G/A fil
South Africa’s Flow gets funding to automate social media advertising for real estate agencies
The process used by millions of agents and thousands of property portals globally to reach buyers and sellers on digital channels is highly fragmented. And it’s evident that proptech, unlike other i
Tabby raises $58M at $660M valuation as PayPal Ventures makes first investment in the GCC
MENA-based buy now, pay later startup Tabby has raised $58 million, led by Sequoia Capital India and STV, at a valuation of $660 million. The investors co-led the fintech’s Series B extension round
African gaming startup Carry1st raises $27M from Bitkraft Ventures and a16z
In the coming decades, Africa will be a significant growth market for mobile games, driven by the proliferation of technology adoption among the continent’s youthful population. And as gamers in sub
Africa predicted to experience sustained funding slowdown in 2023
The operating environment for startups in Africa is expected to worsen this year, continuing the trend that picked up in the last half of 2022.
Why Africa had no unicorns last year despite record fundraising haul
Africa, bucking global trends, raised more VC dollars in 2022 than 2021. But its unicorn list stayed stagnant.
BioNTech acquires Tunisian-born and UK-based AI startup InstaDeep for £562M
German-based biotech company BioNTech SE is set to acquire InstaDeep, a Tunis-born and U.K.-based artificial intelligence (AI) startup, for up to £562 million (~$680 million) in its largest deal yet.
Jetstream, a Ghanaian e-logistics platform for Africa’s B2B importers and exporters, takes in $13M equity, debt
The market for cross-border logistics services is said to hit revenues of $32 billion by 2025, with several companies vying for market share in the ever-growing competitive industry. Ghanaian e-logist
Nigerian agritech Releaf gets more capital as it launches new tech for food processing
Releaf, a Nigerian agritech startup that supplies ingredients (starting with the oil palm) to consumer goods manufacturers and their food factories, has received $3.3 million in an oversubscribed pre-
Sun King, a provider of solar energy products in Africa and Asia, expands Series D to $330M
Sun King, a provider of off-grid solar energy products in Africa and Asia, has secured a $70 million equity investment led by LeapFrog Investments. It’s an extension of the $260 million Series D rou
Pan-African early-stage firm Ventures Platform closes fund, hits $46M
Ventures Platform, a Pan-African early-stage venture capital firm, has closed its fund at $46 million as it looks to double down on “category-leading” companies across the continent. The six-year-
Visa to invest $1B in Africa over the next five years
Global payments giant Visa says it will invest $1 billion by 2027 to expand its investments in Africa amidst a digital payments boom on the continent. Visa chief Al Kelly announced this pledge on Wedn