africa

Sylndr, with fresh $15.7M, allows users to buy, sell, finance, and service used cars in Egypt

Cairo-based Sylndr has raised $15.7 million as it expands beyond online used car sales into auto financing, servicing, and tools for dealers. The round was led by Development Partners International’s Nclude Fund and included follow-on investments from Algebra Ventures and Nclude. The company, which operates in Egypt’s fast-growing but under-digitized vehicle market, said the latest […]

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OmniRetail shakes up Africa’s B2B e-commerce market with $20M Series A

When Deepankar Rustagi last raised money for OmniRetail in 2022, excitement was high for African startups addressing the supply chain and operational challenges in the fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) sector. At one point, these startups received more capital than all sectors, except fintech. Recently, though, the industry’s enthusiasm and venture capital’s interest have faded, as

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Visa-backed African unicorn Moniepoint tackles remittances. But is it late to the game?

When Visa invested in Nigerian fintech Moniepoint earlier this year, it didn’t just validate the newly minted unicorn — it signaled a bold new direction. As part of that deal, the Nigerian fintech best known for building one of Africa’s largest business banking platforms, hinted at plans to integrate with Visa Direct, a move that

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Y Combinator neobank Djamo raises $17M with 1M users across Francophone Africa

Djamo is one of several digital banking startups targeting Africa’s underbanked. But unlike many that focus on large markets like Nigeria, Egypt, or South Africa, Djamo has carved out a niche in Francophone West Africa, specifically the Ivory Coast and, more recently, Senegal. It now serves over one million customers across both countries. The Y

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Here are Africa’s biggest startups based on valuation

Last year, funding into African startups edged past $2 billion, returning to pre-pandemic levels and presenting a mixed bag as expected. Signs suggest 2025 will follow the cautious trends of the past two years. A sharp decline in mega-deals, mirroring global venture capital tightening since the boom of 2020-2021, pushed local and international investors to

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Ex-Network International execs raise $6M for Enza, an African fintech serving banks

Over the past decade, Dubai-based Network International has become one of the dominant payment processors across the Middle East and Africa, thanks in part to a pair of acquisitions. However, many large incumbents can fall prey to slower innovation, opening the door for smaller, faster-moving startups. The latest development is Enza, a fintech founded in

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YC-backed food supply startup Vendease restructures employees’ salaries

Y Combinator-backed Nigerian food procurement startup Vendease has changed its employee pay structure and is seeking fresh capital, TechCrunch has learned. This is after laying off 44% of its workforce — around 120 employees —last month, marking its second round of job cuts in five months. In the latest development, the startup has now replaced

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Google, Speedinvest back Kenya’s Leta, which uses AI to make logistics cheaper

African businesses pay up to four times the global average to transport goods, driving up prices for essentials like food and medicine. Logistics make up 75% of product costs on the continent, according to the African Development Bank (AfDB). Many of these businesses also rely on manual logistics, leading to delays. Nairobi-based logistics software-as-a-service provider

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African VC LoftyInc Capital launches third fund for seed and Series A, reaches $43M first close

One of Africa’s most active investors, known for early bets on unicorns like Flutterwave, Andela, and Wave, has secured fresh capital to invest in startups across the continent. This comes as funding deals and volumes in Africa saw only a slight dip last year, according to a report by VC firm Partech. LoftyInc Capital, which

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Gozem nets $30M to expand vehicle financing, digital banking in Francophone Africa

Since its launch in 2018 as a ride-hailing service in Togo, Gozem has steadily expanded across French-speaking West Africa, integrating a wide range of services as it sought to become a super-app. The company now offers ride-hailing, commerce, vehicle financing, and digital banking across Togo, Benin, Gabon, and Cameroon. Now, in a bid to scale

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