Photos\Graph: Semafor Africa\YouTube Screenshots

African startups are on course to raise $2.2 billion this year, 25% lower than they did in 2023.

The estimate by fundraising tracking platform Africa: The Big Deal underscores the continuation of a funding winter of sorts in the venture capital sector.

In the first nine months of 2024, Kenyan startups raised the most on the continent with $437 million, taking up nearly a third of the total within the period. Nigeria, Egypt and South Africa made up the top four destinations for startup capital in Africa as usual, but the year has also seen $50 million or more invested in startups in Ghana, Tanzania, and Benin.

Two recent deal closures by Nigeria’s Moniepoint and Tyme in South Africa have minted two new billion-dollar startups, giving an underwhelming fundraising year an optimistic end. Both companies are in the business of digital financial services, further evidence of the fintech sector’s status as the preeminent recipient of investor interest in Africa.

— Alexander Onukwue

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