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8 Nigerian Startups Join JICA NINJA Accelerator Programme

8 Nigerian Startups Join JICA NINJA Accelerator Programme

At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic activities shrank on a global scale. A drastic decrease in revenue generation caused many private companies to downsize or change business strategies. Africa and Asia were not exempt from this. Many startups were faced with fragile social infrastructure, a limitation of public

Flutterwave makes CNBC Disruptor 50 list

Flutterwave makes CNBC Disruptor 50 list

Nigerian fintech startup, Flutterwave has been named in the CNBC Disruptor 50 list. It is the only African company named in the list which has Stripe, Airtable, Clubhouse, Robinhood amongst others. CNBC said the list “highlights the private companies leading out of the pandemic with business models and growth rates

Nigeria’s Healthtech Startup, CribMD closes $2.6m seed round Plans Product Growth and Team Expansion

Nigeria’s Healthtech Startup, CribMD closes $2.6m seed round Plans Product Growth and Team Expansion

Nigerian HealthTech startup, CribMD has announced it closed a seed fund of $2.6million in a seed funding round led by US-based VC, Sputnik ATX; Swedish accelerator, Norrsken; and mass media company, The Guardian Nigeria. This fund brings the startup’s total investments to $2.85 million. Founded in June

Termii expands to Ivory Coast, weeks after raising a $1.4m seed funding

Termii expands to Ivory Coast, weeks after raising a $1.4m seed funding

In a recently released blog post, Nigerian Communications Platform as a Service (CPaaS) startup, Termii has officially announced its expansion to Ivory Coast. In the statement, it said, “We’re constantly improving our messaging solution to help businesses conveniently reach and engage their customers across Africa, and we’re super

Germany’s Impacc set to invest up to $150k in Africa Startups

Germany’s Impacc set to invest up to $150k in Africa Startups

Germany-based non-profit Impacc has announced plans to provide smart equity investment of between $30,000 and $150,000 to African startups with sustainable, high-impact solutions to social, economic, and environmental challenges affecting the base of pyramid communities in Africa. Impacc focuses on supporting startups in areas that are untapped. This

Telkom partners with EasyEquities to Provide Financial Services

Telkom partners with EasyEquities to Provide Financial Services

South Africa’s telecommunications provider Telkom has declared its interest in digital financing after securing 10,000 Digital Wallet subscribers since launching a pilot program in December 2020. Telkom has now announced a partnership with MTN’s Mobile Money (MoMo) platform, allowing subscribers to send and receive money via their

Botswana launches Pilot Drone Technology for Healthcare Delivery

Botswana launches Pilot Drone Technology for Healthcare Delivery

Botswana has become the first Southern Africa country to pilot drone technology for healthcare delivery, and the third in Africa after Rwanda and Ghana. The project is spearheaded by UNFPA, alongside Botswana’s Ministry of Health and Wellness, the Ministry of Tertiary Education, Research, Science and Technology, and Botswana International

Nigeria's Central Bank fixes $10M as escrow fees in new capital requirements for fintech companies

Nigeria's Central Bank fixes $10M as escrow fees in new capital requirements for fintech companies

Launching a fintech startup is about to get more difficult in Nigeria, due to CBN’s new capital requirements ₦4bn (Four Billion Naira) for payment companies. In a circular released on Monday 24th of April, 2021, the Central Bank of Nigeria has issued new capital requirements for payment firms and

Europe’s Startup Wise Guys Expands to Africa, Starts First Program in Namibia

Europe’s Startup Wise Guys Expands to Africa, Starts First Program in Namibia

Europe’s B2B startup accelerator Startup Wise Guys have announced it is expanding its programs to Africa. The accelerator has plans for several programs in Africa and already has a program underway in Namibia. The accelerator firm plans an additional four programs for the continent by 2022, focusing on East

Carry1st and CrazyLabs launch gaming accelerator in Cape Town

Carry1st and CrazyLabs launch gaming accelerator in Cape Town

Africa is regarded as the fastest-growing region for mobile game downloads in the world. Despite this huge potential, there’s still a dearth of indigenous African games in the industry. More so, international studios often find it difficult to profitably serve African gamers due to unresolved distribution and digital payments

Egyptian agri-fintech startup, Mozare secures over $1M in pre-seed funding from Algebra Ventures

Egyptian agri-fintech startup, Mozare secures over $1M in pre-seed funding from Algebra Ventures

Mozare3, a Giza-based Agri-fintech startup that helps farmers sell their farm produce, has secured an undisclosed seven-figure investment in a pre-seed funding round led by Algebra Ventures and Disruptech Ventures. EFG-EV and other reputable angel investors also participated in the funding round. Mozare3 was founded in 2020 by Hussein Abou

UCT-based Accelerator selects 10 startups for its Accelerator Program

UCT-based Accelerator selects 10 startups for its Accelerator Program

The UCT GSB Solution Space has announced it is entering phase two of its annual E-Track Program involving a three-part venture acceleration and capacity-building program for high-impact startups. The acceleration program is partnered with ayoba. The program that started with the Venture Launch course has now seen 10 startups moved

Ugandans can now apply for $100k in EU Green Enterprise Funding

Ugandans can now apply for $100k in EU Green Enterprise Funding

Applications are currently open for the Uganda Green Enterprise Finance Accelerator (UGEFA) program, a four-year European Union (EU)-funded project that provides green businesses with customized loans and direct acceleration support. The UGEFA program is looking to provide funding ranging between $10,000 and $100,000 for eligible startups. Aside

Flat6Labs raises $10 million, plans to increase its cash seed offering

Flat6Labs raises $10 million, plans to increase its cash seed offering

Over the last few weeks, the Egyptian startup space has witnessed increased funding activities. From Telda’s impressive $5million pre-seed raise to Bosta and Homzmart securing huge amounts in their series A rounds. Most of these funding activities are only possible because of the active local and international investors and

Egyptain Startup, Tays, secures an Undisclosed Seven-figure Pre-seed investment

Egyptain Startup, Tays, secures an Undisclosed Seven-figure Pre-seed investment

Tays, an Egypt-based social and professional networking startup has secured an undisclosed seven-figure pre-seed funding from Angel Investors within the country’s startup ecosystem. Founded by Sherif Bacheet in 2020, the Egypt-based startup offers an end-to-end social networking app that uses machine learning to connect professionals based on similar interests.

YC Backed fintech startup, Mono, raises $2million seed funding

YC Backed fintech startup, Mono, raises $2million seed funding

Mono, a YC backed fintech startup working to improve financial inclusion and connectivity in Africa has raised $2million in seed funding. The company which says it is building the Plaid for Africa had earlier raised $500,000 in pre-seed funding last September, before bagging $125,000 from YC in February

Nigeria’s Bongalow adds to seed round with UNCOVERED FUND investment

Nigeria’s Bongalow adds to seed round with UNCOVERED FUND investment

Nigerian home financing startup Bongalow has announced it has raised an extra undisclosed seed fund in a seed funding round from Africa-focused Japanese venture firm UNCOVERED FUND. Bongalow is a mobile-powered home financing marketplace created by Kelechi Nwokocha. The startup enables users to shop for the best home loan to

Organizations of women in tech empowering African women to pursue careers and businesses in tech

Organizations of women in tech empowering African women to pursue careers and businesses in tech

According to Georgina Varley, Gender diversity in the tech industry is smart economics. Despite receiving 50% less venture capital funding, global technology firms led by female entrepreneurs typically achieve a 35% higher return on investment than those run by men in 2019. The number of pioneering women in business is

Ghanaian Virtual Reality tours startup DOBIISON Announces Expansion Across Africa

Ghanaian Virtual Reality tours startup DOBIISON Announces Expansion Across Africa

Ghana’s virtual tours and immersive digital experiences for the real estate, construction, and tourism industries startup DOBIISON, has announced its plans to scale its service across Africa. DOBIISON was founded in 2018 by Selasie Awity and has since built the largest collection of Ghanaian virtual reality (VR) content. The

Dubawa Inducts 26 Fact-Checkers for 2021 Fellowship

Dubawa Inducts 26 Fact-Checkers for 2021 Fellowship

West Africa’s verification and fact-checking platform, Dubawa, has announced the conclusion of plans to induct 26 fellows into its 2021 cohort of fact-checkers to combat misinformation in the sub-region. The stage, under the guidance of the Premium Times Centre for Investigative Journalism (PTCIJ), reported the initiation of the yearly

South African Fintech startup Ukheshe Expands to Asia-Pacific

South African Fintech startup Ukheshe Expands to Asia-Pacific

South African Fintech startup Ukheshe Technologies has announced its expansion into the Asia-Pacific region stemming from its introduction of an innovative digital-first payment solution. Ukheshe has fostered an innovation platform that provides banks and telecoms SMMEs with moderate advanced banking and installment administrations, with customer obtaining, onboarding, and dissemination costs

South Africa’s Safcoin to be listed for Exchange Offering

South Africa’s Safcoin to be listed for Exchange Offering

South African cryptocurrency startup Safcoin has announced it will undergo an Initial Exchange Offering (IEO) this month, followed by an international listing in June. The listing is coming less than three years after the currency was founded by the South African entrepreneurial trio of Michela, Tony, and Neil in Hartenbos.

Twitter launches its verification program, things you should note

Twitter launches its verification program, things you should note

Microblogging platform, Twitter has officially launched its verification program for all users. Meaning, users can apply and get the blue checkmark displayed on their profile. The blue badge is meant to distinguish the authenticity of accounts that are of high public interest. This new announcement is coming after the process

Microsoft Announces Plans to retire its Internet Explorer

Microsoft Announces Plans to retire its Internet Explorer

Microsoft has announced that its Microsoft’s Internet Explorer will finally be retired next year after more than 26 years of service. The web browser that was released alongside Windows 95 will no longer appear on consumer versions of Windows 10 after June 2022. Microsoft had had to issue an

Startup Circles secures $150k investment from Enygma Ventures

Startup Circles secures $150k investment from Enygma Ventures

Today, Startup Circles, an innovative practical business school that helps startup founders scale their business and become investor-ready has secured R2.1-million ($150k) in funding from US Venture Capital fund, Enygma Ventures. This fund will be used to support the work of startup Circles and invest in companies that have