The African startup ecosystem continues to show remarkable dynamism as we close out H1 2025 and enter into the second half of the year. This last week brought significant developments across multiple fronts: Egyptian fintech Valu made headlines with its public debut on the Egyptian Exchange, backed by Amazon’s investment, while Nigeria’s Chowdeck strategically acquired POS provider Mira to expand beyond delivery services. Meanwhile, funding activity remained robust with notable rounds for logistics platform Nowlun, co-living startup Roomz.rent, and authentication framework Better Auth. Egypt’s deeptech ambitions also took centre stage with Aria Ventures launching a $1 million fund to support early-stage innovations. Get the full details below.
Nowlun
Funding Round: Seed Extension ($600,000)
Investors: Ingressive Capital
Founders: Moataz Khamis, Mahmoud Khaled, and Ahmed Emara
Founded: 2021, Egypt
About Company
Nowlun is an online freight forwarding platform that simplifies global logistics in the MENA region. The company operates a digital platform allowing customers to compare different freight services and rates, helping businesses move full container loads (FCL) and bulk cargo with speed and simplicity. The platform provides real-time tracking and instant updates, addressing the inefficiencies in a sector still dominated by manual processes.
What Next?
This seed extension follows Nowlun’s $1.7 million seed round in December 2024, led by Nama Ventures and A15. The combined funding will accelerate development of Nowlun’s Smart Logistics Assistant, expand operations in Egypt and Saudi Arabia, and enable businesses to make smarter, faster shipping decisions in the traditionally manual freight forwarding industry.
Roomz.rent
Funding Round: Undisclosed
Investors: Qora71
Founders: Ahmed Mandour and Yasser AlSarrag
Founded: 2024, Egypt
About Company
Roomz.rent is a co-living platform that offers furnished rooms with flexible lease terms starting at three months. The startup targets young professionals, students, and expats by leveraging proprietary technology to match tenants with compatible flatmates. The platform provides fully managed living spaces, combining convenience, affordability, and community for urban dwellers seeking flexible housing solutions.
What Next?
The funding will enable Roomz.rent to scale operations across Egypt, enhance its matching platform capabilities, and expand to new urban markets throughout the MENA region. The company aims to establish itself as a leading regional co-living brand addressing the growing demand for flexible, community-oriented housing.
Talenteo
Funding Round: Undisclosed
Investors: 216 Capital
Founders: Tarik Metnani and Louai Djaffer
Founded: 2022, Algeria
About Company
Talenteo provides a comprehensive SaaS platform for human resources and payroll management, specifically tailored to African SMEs and mid-sized companies. The platform addresses the unique operational challenges faced by businesses across the continent, offering localised HR solutions that understand the regulatory and cultural nuances of different African markets.
What Next?
This investment represents a significant milestone in Talenteo’s mission to become a leading digital HR player across Africa. The funding will support the company’s expansion strategy and platform development as it seeks to capture market share in the underserved African HR-tech space.
Better Auth
Funding Round: $5 Million
Investors: Peak XV, Y Combinator, Chapter One, and P1 Ventures
Founders: Bereket Engida
Founded: Ethiopia
About Company
Better Auth is an authentication framework developer that has created a flexible, developer-friendly solution for TypeScript developers. The company’s platform enables developers to implement authentication and authorisation directly within backend applications, offering an alternative to traditional third-party authentication services with greater control and customisation options.
What Next?
Better Auth is positioning itself as a powerful, open-source alternative to existing authentication services. The $5 million funding will support continued development of core features and the launch of enterprise infrastructure, helping the company scale its developer-focused solutions globally.
Complete Farmer
Funding Round: $2.5 Million
Investors: EU’s Agrifi Initiative
Founded: Ghana
About Company
Complete Farmer operates an agricultural technology platform focused on connecting smallholder farmers with global markets and suppliers. The company works to make agricultural produce more traceable and competitive by providing farmers with access to modern supply chain infrastructure and market linkages.
What Next?
The investment, administered by EDFI Management Company, will fund the construction of six fulfilment centres across five northern regions in Ghana. The initiative aims to connect 5,000 farmers more closely to global buyers and suppliers, enhancing the traceability and competitiveness of their produce beyond local markets.
PaidHR
Funding Round: Seed ($1.8 Million)
Investors: Undisclosed
Founded: 2020, Nigeria
About Company
PaidHR is an HR-tech startup providing comprehensive HR and payroll solutions for businesses across Africa. The platform includes robust payroll management systems, HR workflow tools, employee wallets, and benefits administration. What started as a basic HR and payroll tool has evolved into a multi-currency payments engine, reflecting broader trends in the HR-tech space.
What Next?
The seed funding marks a pivotal moment for PaidHR as it transitions from traditional HR services to a more comprehensive payments platform. The investment will support the company’s evolution and fuel its growth as it captures the expanding African HR-tech market.
Other News
Aria Ventures Launches Fund to Improve Deeptech Investment in Egypt
Aria Ventures, a Cairo-based venture studio, has announced the launch of a new EGP 50 million (approximately $1 million USD) fund dedicated to Egypt’s emerging deeptech sector. The fund, which is set to be deployed between 2025 and 2026, targets early-stage startups working in AI, machine learning, biotech, nanotech, robotics, IoT, and industrial digitalisation. The company plans to expand the fund to EGP 200 million (approximately $4 million USD) over the next four years.
Beyond capital provision, Aria Ventures operates as a hands-on venture studio, offering end-to-end support including idea validation, team building, technical infrastructure, and market research. The company has also launched the “DeepTecher” competition, accepting applications until July 5, 2025, to identify promising scientific projects and transform them into viable deeptech startups through structured mentorship and evaluation.
Amazon-Backed Valu Begins Trading on EGX
Egyptian fintech platform Valu has commenced trading on the Egyptian Exchange (EGX), marking a significant milestone with global e-commerce giant Amazon acquiring a 3.95% stake. This move converts Amazon’s initial $10 million investment from 2022 into direct equity, fulfilling a previously agreed option tied to a “qualified liquidity event.”
Valu’s listing was executed through an innovative in-kind dividend distribution by parent company EFG Holding, allowing shareholders to directly own Valu shares without a traditional public offering. The transaction distributed approximately 20.488% of Valu’s share capital via block trade at EGP 6.041 per share.
Founded in 2017, Valu has established itself as a pioneer in Buy-Now-Pay-Later (BNPL) services in the MENA region. With Amazon now a direct investor, the company is positioned to enhance its offerings and solidify its role in advancing financial inclusion and digital transformation across Egypt and beyond.
Acquisitions
Chowdeck Acquires Mira
Nigerian on-demand delivery platform Chowdeck has acquired Mira, a rapidly growing point-of-sale (POS) solutions provider for the food and hospitality industry. While financial terms remain undisclosed, this strategic acquisition signals Chowdeck’s expansion beyond last-mile logistics toward becoming a comprehensive technology partner for food businesses across Africa.
Founded in 2023, Mira has quickly gained traction with over 500 hospitality businesses using its all-in-one platform to manage sales, inventory, kitchen performance, and customer engagement. The acquisition allows Chowdeck to leverage Mira’s expertise in addressing operational challenges unique to African markets, including infrastructure gaps and inconsistent supply chains.
As part of the deal, Mira’s CEO Ted Oladele will join Chowdeck as Head of Product, leading development of new solutions for the continental food and hospitality sector. This integration is expected to create new revenue streams beyond delivery fees, including in-store transactions, POS services, and financing options, transforming Chowdeck into a full-stack enabler for Africa’s retail and food businesses.
