African Startups Raise $1.4B During 1H26
During the first half of 2026 (1H26), startups across Africa managed to raise about USD 1.4 billion, roughly the same amount as in 1H25. Thirty startups, mostly late-stage nearing commercialization, grabbed the lion’s share of 85% of venture capital, whereas more than 200 other enterprises, mostly early-stage, had to fight over the remaining 15% of crumbs.
Despite a flat progress curve, the African startup ecosystem remains optimistic as the climate is still better than during the recent ‘hibernation period.’ After reaching a record level of USD 6 billion in 2022, venture capital (#VC) almost dried out in 2024. Large venture firms such as SoftBank and Tiger Global scaled back their investments on the continent due to a global market correction of tech stocks.
Spiro — an eMobility startup which assembles and operates electric motorcycles — stood out of the lot by securing USD 327 million, much more than the next in line. SolarAfrica took the silver medal with USD 94 million, and Sistema.bio took bronze with USD 53 million. Appetite for #FinTech remains strong, with Egypt’s consumer credit platform VaIU securing a USD 64 million debt facility.
| No | Startup | Sector | Primary Market (s) | VC or Financier(s) | Amt $M |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Spiro | eMobility | Kenya, Benin | ISA, Afreximbank, Chariot Motors | 327 |
| 2 | SolarAfrica | Clean Energy | South Africa | Inspired Evolution | 94 |
| 3 | vaIU | FinTech | Egypt | Regional Banking Syndicate | 64 |
| 4 | Sistema.bio | Clean Energy | Kenya, | FMO Dutch, Inven Capital | 53 |
| 5 | Breadfast | eCommerce | Egypt | Vostok New Ventures | 50 |
| 6 | NALA | FinTech | Tanzania, Kenya | Balderton Capital, DST Global | 50 |
| 7 | GoCab | eMobility | Côte d’Ivoire, Senegal | E3 Capital, Janngo Capital, KawiSafi, Cur8 Capital | 45 |
| 8 | CrossBoundary | Clean Energy | Kenya, EAC | ARCH | 35 |
| 9 | Liquid Intelligent Tech | Telecom | South Africa | IFC | 30 |
| 10 | LemFI | FinTech | Nigeria | Left Lane Capital | 25 |
The case of VaIU does not seem to be isolated, as venture capital appears to be shifting from equity to debt financing to avoid ‘steep equity dilution’ in subsequent rounds. Thus, venture debt accounted for 40% of all startup financing in 2025.
#GenderEquality is abysmally poor in the African startup world. Only 1.5% of venture capital went to startups founded by a woman, and only 9% of startups that received funding have at least one female co-founder.
Venture Capital is gradually expanding beyond the traditional Big Four, namely, South Africa, Nigeria, Egypt and Kenya. As a matter of fact, Tanzania ($52M), Morocco ($48M), and Côte d’Ivoire ($45M) are emerging as new destinations for venture capital. Some large #MDB/#DFI, notably WB IFC, Afreximbank, Dutch FMO, are getting more comfortable venturing into the startup world.