🚀💴 Show Me The Money!💰💵

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⟹ 🚀 STARTUPS WATCH 🚀 ⟸

Here are the 5 top startups in the African eco-system we think you need to know:

Duplo is modernizing payments for B2B companies in Africa. The startup provides an embedded payments product that helps businesses streamline their financial operations with APIs and user-friendly interfaces for collecting and attributing payments.

Their platform completely automates the back-office processes—generating and processing invoices, managing expenses, and completing account reconciliations—allowing African businesses to seamlessly manage their transactions, pay vendors, and get paid faster. Duplo aims to power commerce across the continent, making financial operations efficient, transparent, and cost-effective

Diool is transforming the payment landscape for small merchants across Cameroon. The startup offers a digital platform that enables merchants to accept payments from customers, facilitate prepaid recharges, and bill payments, and manage cash deposits and withdrawals.

With a quick account setup process, Diool allows merchants to streamline their operations, manage multiple shops, and enhance customer engagement through geolocation features and real-time reporting.

Diool emphasizes security and compliance, ensuring a smooth onboarding process validated by its compliance team. Their transparent and flexible pricing model makes it easy for businesses to manage costs. By centralizing transactions and offering instant payments, Diool is dedicated to simplifying financial operations for African merchants, helping them increase revenue and improve their overall efficiency.

KudiGO, now rebranded as VerifiBuy, is revolutionizing the consumer retail landscape in Africa by offering innovative, data-oriented solutions designed for the retail industry. Positioned as an integrator and aggregator of essential technology tools, VerifiBuy aims to provide a comprehensive platform that enhances business oversight, financial inclusion, traceability, transparency, and value chain accessibility.

Their customized storefront solution seamlessly bridges online and offline retail experiences, enabling businesses to gain insights into sales performance and customer behavior through intuitive analytics tools. With features like an AI-powered online store that can be set up in just five minutes, social commerce escrow for secure payments, and tools for loyalty and credit financing, VerifiBuy empowers retail businesses to thrive in the digital marketplace.

⟹ 💼 💰️ VENTURE CAPITAL WATCH 💼 💰️ ⟸

In this week’s VC Watch, African startups raised $306 million in Q3 2024, bringing the year-to-date total to $836 million—down 40% compared to the same period in 2023 according to a report by Disrupt Africa. The funding decline mirrors the broader global capital shortage, though there are glimmers of improvement. Notable raises by startups like NALA, MNT-Halan, and Paymob hint at a slow recovery, with new funds recently announced providing a positive outlook for the future. The African tech ecosystem may be facing challenges, but the optimism for a funding rebound is growing!

This past week, South African fintech startup LittleFish secured funding from TLcom Capital and Flourish Ventures to scale its digital platform for SMEs. Co-founded by Brandon Roberts and Miod Davith Kahwa, LittleFish partners with banks to offer streamlined services, digital payments, and access to credit—empowering banks to better serve small businesses across Africa. The funding will help LittleFish scale operations, leveraging a key partnership with Visa to enhance its competitive edge in the market

A new ZAR300 million ($17.3 million) "Seed Fund of Funds" has launched, spearheaded by the SA SME Fund, the Department of Science and Innovation, and E Squared Investments. This fund is dedicated to providing crucial early-stage capital to South African tech startups. The goal? To invest in over 50 tech-driven startups through experienced fund managers, driving innovation and transformation in the region. As Ketso Gordhan of the SA SME Fund puts it, "We’re not just funding startups—we're cultivating the next generation of industry leaders." A promising boost for South Africa's venture landscape!

South African startup Scale has secured $700,000 in pre-seed funding to help fintechs streamline card issuance. Co-founded by former Visa director Miranda Perumal and Barbara Woollams, Scale connects fintechs to banks, issuer processors, KYC systems, and payment networks—cutting costs and speeding up card launches. Backed by 54 Collective, First Circle Capital, and others, Scale plans to expand into Kenya, Zambia, and Cote d’Ivoire. As African fintechs navigate high costs and fraud challenges, Scale aims to be a key enabler in the continent's growing card issuance market, projected to reach $230 billion by 2025.

Winich Farms, a Nigerian agritech startup, has raised $3 million in pre-Series A funding to expand its fulfillment centers and enhance its tech platform. Founded by brothers Riches and Winner Attai, along with CTO Chichebem Jibunoh, Winich Farms connects rural farmers to retailers via a mobile app, streamlining the supply chain for grains. Led by Acumen Resilient Agriculture Fund, with support from other impact investors, this funding will help Winich scale operations, reduce delivery times with new regional hubs, and extend credit access for farmers—strengthening its role in Africa's growing agritech market.

👀 This week’s featured investor is E Squared Investments. 👀

E Squared Investments is a South African impact investor dedicated to empowering responsible entrepreneurs, fostering youth entrepreneurship, and driving social upliftment across the country.

Established as a Black Economic Empowerment partner by the late Dr. Allan Gray, E Squared was founded in 2007 and began funding activity in 2016, with a mission to create meaningful employment and support high-growth businesses.

Focusing on economic inclusivity, E Squared provides both funding and comprehensive business support to early-stage founders and social enterprises committed to tackling social inequality. By backing founders who prioritize community impact, E Squared aims to be a catalyst for transformative change in South Africa.

Their vision? An economically inclusive South Africa where everyone has meaningful opportunities to thrive. 🌍✨

Their Portfolio includes startups like Nefasi Water, Rewoven, Nambu, Pele Green & Xplorio.

⟹ 📺️ MEDIA WATCH 📺️  ⟸

Here are the 5 key things in the news this week that you need to know:

1. Payment unicorn Zepz raises $267 million from World Bank, Accel, and TCV - Techcabal

2. Kenya fines Baltic fintech Eleving’s local arm for misleading customers - Techcrunch

3. African startups raised $306m in Q3; total funding down 40% year-on-year - Disrupt Africa

4. Nigerian agritech startup Winich Farms raises $3 million pre-series A funding - Techcabal

5. Lesaka completes acquisition of Adumo for $96 million - Techcabal

And that’s your weekly dosage of the African startup ecosystem! If you have any comments or feedback, just respond to this email. We are always looking to hear from our community.

Thanks for reading. See you next week.

Gitonga, the Stoic Founder at StartupHub.Africa 🚀

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