Nigeria leads as African startups raised $217m in February

After experiencing a sluggish January, African startups witnessed a significant surge in funding in February 2024 with Nigeria topping the fundraisers.

According to The Big Deal’s report, the total startup funding in February reached nearly $217m, marking almost a threefold increase compared to the previous month’s $77m.

The report noted that despite the rebound, funding levels still fell short of figures observed in the same period over the past four years.

In February, 38 startups raised at least $100k last month in equity, debt, or grants, the same number as in January.

However, the total amount they announced was nearly three times higher, at $217m ($156m in equity and $59m in debt).

The report showed that Nigerian fintech, transport company Moove, emerged as the largest contributor, accounting for 51 per cent of the total funding.

Initially announcing a $10m debt for its expansion in India, Moove later became the focus of reports, revealing ongoing talks with Uber for a potential investment of up to $100m.

If successful, the investment could elevate Moove’s valuation from $650m to $750m, the report stated.

It noted, “As you may remember, January was a pretty quiet month with only $77m worth of deals announced on the continent.

“The good news is that things have picked up in February, 38 startups raised at least $100k last month (in equity, debt, or grants), the same number as in January.

“The largest contributor by far (51 per cent of the total) was Nigerian transport tech Moove, which first announced $10m of debt for its India expansion before rumours of an upcoming new round surfaced last week.

“We have been able to confirm directly with one of the investors that the $100m Series B is indeed happening. There were also three announced exits last month: Carbon bought Vella Finance, Auto24 acquired Kupatana, and FairMoney might buy Umba. All in all, funding levels in February 2024 were quite comparable to those in 2020 and 2021.”

With an outlook for startup funding for 2024 YTD, the report revealed that startups on the continent had raised just short of $300m.

It added that 80 startups had raised at least $100k, 38 of which had raised at least $1m.

The continent’s Big Four (Nigeria, Kenya, Egypt, And South Africa) had claimed 86 per cent of all the funding, according to the Big Deal’s report.

Nigeria had 42 per cent with Moove alone raking in $233m; Kenya 27 per cent, raising $81m, Egypt 10 per cent getting $28m, and South Africa seven per cent with $22m.