Startups

A collection of 279 posts

Startups

Nigerian Security and Exchange Commission declare activities of some Fintech startups Illegal

The Nigerian capital market regulator, SEC has released a circular declaring the activities of some fintech trading platforms that allow Nigerians to invest and trade in stocks listed on the Nigerian and International markets illegal. Some of the affected platforms include Chaka, Trove, Bamboo, and Risevest. The government agency stated

Startups

Stripe expands to the Middle East with UAE launch

The global online payments company, Stripe, has chosen Dubai for its first expansion into the Middle East and North Africa. The launch comes after the introduction of its private beta in the country a few months ago. Stripe’s expansion to the Middle East has been in the works since

Startups

Egyptian fintech startup, Paymob closes a record breaking $18.5 million Series A to drive its expansion

Cairo-based fintech, Paymob has announced today the close of a record-breaking $18.5 million Series A round led by Global Ventures, with participation from Egyptian investment fund A15 and the Dutch entrepreneurial development bank FMO. The round includes $15 million in fresh capital and $3.5 million that came as

Startups

Mastercard, Uber renews partnership to boost payment digitalisation and financial inclusion in MEA Region

Mastercard and Uber have renewed their long-term partnership by implementing a new strategic initiative that will focus on digital payments and advancing financial inclusion in the Middle East and Africa (MEA). Through this partnership, Uber will be able to drive digitization across its business operations by leveraging Mastercard’s single

Startups

GSMA announces winners of the Innovation Fund for Mobile Internet Adoption and Digital Inclusion Grant

The GSMA has today announced the winners of the GSMA Innovation Fund for Mobile Internet Adoption and Digital Inclusion grant. The fund which was launched in April last year was created to open up opportunities for innovative start-ups and SMEs to address the key barriers of accessibility, affordability, digital skills,

Startups

Japanese firms rate Kenya as the top investment location in the continent

Kenya has been rated the most attractive destination for Japanese firms looking to make investments in Africa. According to a survey conducted by the Japan External Trade Organisation (JETRO) on Japanese-affiliated companies in Africa. According to the Survey, East Asian affiliated firms rated Kenya highly because of its position as

Startups

Canva reaches $15billion valuation after raising $71billion in new funding round

Australia-based Design startup, Canva, announced on Tuesday 6th of April that it has raised $71 million in new funding led by T. Rowe Price and Dragoneer at a $15 billion valuation. Other investors who took part in the round include previous investors, Blackbird Ventures, and Skip Capital. Canva, which says

Startups

Clubhouse launches payments for creators, plan to roll out Android App soon

Audio-chat platform, Clubhouse has announced the introduction of a payment feature that will allow users to tip their favorite speakers or creators on the platform. In what the company described as the “first of many features”, this new feature will allow creators to receive payment directly on the Clubhouse app.

Startups

Egyptian VC firm, Algebra Ventures launches $90M fund for startups in Egypt

Cairo-based Venture Capitalist firm, Algebra Ventures, has today announced the launch of its $90 million investment fund. This is coming on the heels of a $54million investment fund that was closed 4years ago. With this new funding round, the firm hopes to have raised $144million when this second fund closes

Startups

Pricepally has raised a six-digit pre-seed funding round to help it consolidate its early growth

Though Nigeria boasts as the largest economy in Africa with a GDP of about USD$441billion, the country has not been without its own challenges. Over the last five years, the country has survived two recessions that have occasioned a surge in the inflation rate of the country. This has

Startups

South African security tech startup, AURA, expands to the UK

Weeks after launching its East African office in Kenya, South African-based security tech start-up and medical platform, AURA, announced it would be expanding its product offering globally, starting with the UK market. This expansion will see the innovative South African startup offer its state-of-the-art security response services to support the

Startups

Nedbank, two other SA Banks launch Apple Pay for users

Digital mobile payment platform Apple Pay is now available in 3 South African Banks namely Nedbank, Absa, and Discovery Bank. The platform which was quietly launched in the country makes South Africa the first country in Africa to get Apple Pay support. The new Apple Pay feature is a secure,

Startups

NALA expands remittance services to East Africa

In Tanzania, mobile money services can be relatively difficult to use due to unstable internet and high service fees. Africa still remains the most expensive continent to send money to, due to convoluted payment systems and lack of infrastructure. Benjamin Fernandes noticed this as a national television host while building

Startups

Uganda’s Tugende secures $3.6M funding to meet the demand for its asset finance products

Uganda-based technology-enabled asset finance company Tugende announced today that it has secured $3.6 million in a Series A extension round. According to the company, this new funding follows the $6.3 million raised in November 2020 that was led by Toyota Tsusho investment fund Mobility 54. This brings Tugende’

Startups

Accelerex Secures License to offer Ghanaians more Digital Payment Options

Frontline pan-African fintech company, Accelerex Ghana, has hit a new milestone, by securing an enhanced Payment Service Provider (PSP) license from the Bank of Ghana (BoG), under the Payment Systems and Services Act, 2019 (Act 987). This makes Accelerex Ghana the only fintech organization currently within the enhanced PSP category

Startups

Insurtech Startup Curacel raises $450,000 Pre-seed Funding from Atlantica Ventures and Consonance Capital

Lagos based Insuretech startup, Curacel has raised $450,000 in a pre-seed funding round led by Atlantica Ventures and Consonance Capital with participation from Kepple Ventures and other African angel investors. The startup which was founded by Henry Mascot and John Dada in 2017 uses its AI-powered platform for claims

Startups

SA Biomedical Engineering Startup Receives Funding from Futuregrowth

South African based multi-medical device development startup, Impulse Biomed, has secured an undisclosed amount in a venture capital investment towards developing its innovative medical device. The investment was made by South African based asset management firm, Futuregrowth. Known for making late-stage venture capital investments, this will be the first time

Startups

Savvy Fellowship Programme for Entrepreneurs Add More Languages to Expand the Programme

The Savvy Fellowship Program which caters for Aspiring and Early-Stage Entrepreneurs has announced the addition of 14 new languages to its virtual fellowship programme. The programme which was launched in August 2020 had about 90 languages at inception. The addition of 14 new languages today brings the total languages to

Startups

Nigerian Fintech Startup of the Unbanked, Bankly Secures $2M funding led by Vault

Nigerian based Fintech Start up, Bankly   – a platform digitizing cash for the unbanked has announced the close of a $2million seed round funding. The funding round was co-led by Vault, the holding company of VANSO, a fintech that was acquired by Interswitch in 2016; and the payment processing company Flutterwave.

Startups

Ghana Healthtech Startup, Redbird Raises $1.5-million in Funding

Ghana based healthtech startup, Redbird has raised 1.5million in Seed Round of investment with Johnson and Johnson, Newtown Partners (via the Imperial Venture Fund) and Founders Africa participating in the round. This investment brings the total amount raised by the company to $2.5 million in seed funding. The

Startups

Y Combinator-backed Afriex Raises $1.2m Seed Round, to Expand Across Africa

Afriex, a startup backed by Ycombinator has secured $1.2million in seed funding to expand its payment and remittance reach across Africa. The round was led by Pan African VC firm, Launch Africa. Other investors like Y-Combinator, SoftBank Opportunity Fund, Future Africa, Brightstone VC, Processus Capital, Uncommon Ventures, A$AP

Startups

Discovery and beIN Extend Distribution Partnership in MENA Region

Discovery Inc., a global leader in real-life entertainment and world history has announced their decision to renew its longstanding partnership with beIN Media Group across the Middle East and North Africa. This partnership which was signed in 2016 has provided fans with interesting content from HGTV, Food Network, Travel Channel,

Startups

NIGERIAN STARTUP, TERMII RAISES $1.4M IN SEED ROUND TO PUSH NORTH AFRICA EXPANSION

Nigerian based communications as a service (CaaS) startup, Termii has just closed a $1.4 million seed round. The round was co-led by early stage VC firm Future Africa and Japanese but Africa-focused VC Kepple Africa Ventures. Other investors that participated in the round include Acuity Ventures, Aidi Ventures, Assembly

Startups

NIGERIAN FINTECH KUDA RAISES $25M, TO EXPAND TO OTHER AFRICAN COUNTRIES

There are over 57million unbanked people in Nigeria and the battle to reach these people is fierce between banks and Fintech companies. One of the major contenders in this battle is Kuda bank which seeks to make banking more accessible, affordable and rewarding for every African. The bank which prides

Startups

Nigeria Startup Gokada Appoints Nikhil Goel As CEO.

Lagos based logistics, last mile delivery and transportation start-up has appointed Nikhil Goel as its new CEO. He was officially confirmed as CEO yesterday, after spending 8months leading the company after the tragic death of the founder and CEO Fahim Saleh in July 2020. In his new position, Goel will