The last two weeks have seen a flurry of activities in the African startup funding scenes. Most notably, Zepz, formally known as WorldRemit secured a whopping $267 million in a series F funding round.  Several other companies including Winich Farms, TUNL, Amaka Studio, Waribei, Scale, Littlefish, WiASSURE, and Dexude also raised funding from numerous investors.

Funding

Waribei

Funding round: Pre-Seed ($817,000)

Investors:  Mstudio and Saviu Ventures

Founded:  2023, Ivory Coast

Founders: Ladislas Pham and Frédéric Fameni

Products: Waribei operates a fintech solution that connects entrepreneurs with banks and other similar financial institutions making it easier for the entrepreneurs to access credit financing for purchasing goods. The platform also manages the credit facilities’ payment terms.

What Next?: The company intends to use the funding to improve its integration with financial institutions, so it can better tailor its services to meet the specific needs of merchants, empowering them to boost their sales and long-term sustainability.

Zepz

Funding round: Series F ($267 Million)

Investors:  Accel, Leapfrog Investments, TCV, and IFC

Founded:  2010

Founders: Ismali Ahmed

Products: Zepz operates WorldRemit and Sendwave,  financial services infrastructures that enable clients to conduct cross-border transactions without accruing high transaction fees.

What Next?: The new funding will contribute to the company’s expansion across African markets and beyond.

TUNL

Funding round: Seed 

Investors:  E4E Africa, Jozi Angels, Utopia Capital Management, 54Collective, and Digital Africa Ventures

Founded:  2020, South Africa

Founders: Matthew Davey and Craig Lowman

Products: TUNL operates a digital logistics management infrastructure designed to facilitate exports for manufacturers and merchants across Africa. The company also partners with courier companies to provide express courier services through its digital platform.

What Next?: The new funding round will be used to enhance the marketing support provided by the company to small and medium-sized enterprizes.

Winich Farms

Funding round: Pre-Series A (3 Million)

Investors:  Acumen Resilient Agriculture Fund, Climate Resilient Africa Fund, Marula Square, Plug and Play, Tekedia Capital, and Sahel Capital 

Founded:  2020, Nigeria

Founders: Richies Attai, Chichebem Jibunoh

Products: The Agtech startup operates a digital supply chain and inventory management infrastructure designed to simplify  market access for small-scale farmers in Nigeria, making it easier for them to get their products to off-takers and consumers at competitive prices. 

What Next?: Fueled by the funding, the company intends to further improve its solution to better connect farmers with farm produce buyers and secure competitive pricing for their products.

Amaka Studio

Funding round: Seed ($2 Million)

Investors:  Equitane, Morgan Stanley Inclusive Ventures Lab, Silverbacks Holdings 

Founded:  2020, 

Founders: Adaora Oramah

Products: The company operates a digital platform that leverages automated tools to connect creators and brands enabling them to easily network and develop working relationships 

What Next?: The company initiated the fundraising to finance its mission to empower creators of African descent worldwide. Having secured the finances, it will proceed to execute its goal by launching AMAKA Gigs, a platform aimed at revolutionizing the creator economy by streamlining collaborations between brands and creators.

Littlefish

Funding round: Undisclosed

Investors:  TLcom Capital

Founded:  2019, South African

Founders: Brandon Roberts

Products: The fintech company provides a digital platform designed to streamline financial operations for banks enabling them to match up to fintechs and better serve SMEs by offering digital payment processing, and facilitating access to credit.

What Next?: Littlefissh is on a mission to help banks match up to the growing popularity of fintech and adjust to efficiently serve SMEs. The funding will be channelled into fulfilling this mission.

Scale

Funding round: Pre-Seed ($700,000)

Investors: 54Collective, First Circle Capital, and Sunny Side Venture Partners

Founded: 2023

Founders: Miranda Perumal and Barbara Woollams

Products: The company operates an issuer orchestration platform (Scale’s orchestration Issuing Layer, SOIL)  that enables fintechs to issue cards to their clients, achieving faster go-to-market strategies and accelerating their revenue growth.

What Next?:  The new funding will pave the way for the company’s expansion into Zambia, Kenya, and Côte d’Ivoire

WiASSUR

Funding round: Undisclosed

Investors:  AXIAN Investment

Founded:  2019, Ivory Coast

Founders: Teva Fontaine

Products: WiASSURE is an insurance broker operating a dedicated client portal which enables clients to conveniently track and manage their insurance claims, streamlining the relationship between insurers and clients.

What Next?:  With the investment, AXIAN becomes the second largest shareholder in WiASSUR and assumes a governance role from which it can play a more active part in the company’s development

Dexude

Funding round: Undisclosed

Investors:  Business Finland Tempo

Founded:  2022, Nigerian

Founders: Charles Emembolu and Kelvin Chikezie

Products: Exude operates an Edtech platform designed to enhance learning opportunities for Nigerians, eliminating barriers to education and giving users a flexible approach to acquiring structured learning.

What Next?: The company intends to invest the funding into expanding its innovative educational solutions, incorporating more subjects and features for learners.

Acquisitions

Lesaka Technologies Acquires Adumo

Payment processing Adumo has been acquired by Lesaka Technologies. The deal saw Lesaka part ways with a $96 Million value comprising 17 million Lesaka shares and a cash payment of $13 Million. Lesaka’s goal in acquiring Adumo is to enhance its ability to its ever-increasing user base and increase its financial processing capabilities.

Following the deal, Paul Kent, Adumo’s CEO will join the executive leadership team in Lesaka as the head of the merchant division. Similarly, CEO of Crossfin Technology Holdings, Dean Sparrow,  will be crossing into the Lesaka’s board as a non-executive director.

Other Funding News

Dhamana Guarantee Company Secures $10 Million Investment from African Development Bank

Nairobi-based Guarantee Company Dhamana has obtained a $10 Million strategic investment from the AfDB to further support sustainable enterprises. In addition, it will receive equity investments from the County Pension Fund Financial Services and technical assistance from FSD Africa and Cardano Development to facilitate its goal.

Dhamana is on a mission to speed up the development of domestic capital markets in East Africa. It aims to achieve this by connecting underutilized domestic institutional capital sources with the real economy. This will help increase access to affordable local capital and provide additional low-risk investment opportunities for local investors.