Egyptian startups dominated the funding rounds this week, raising $1.96M in 2 disclosed deals. Other activity from Egypt includes an undisclosed deal, a VC firm completing a $100M close of its fund and a startup expanding into Europe.
Startups from South Africa, Nigeria, Morocco, Uganda, and Kenya also featured in this week’s issue of AU-Startup’s African weekly funding review.
Let’s get right into the details.
Funding
Seed
Glamera, an Egypt-born SaaS startup, has raised $1.3M in a seed round led by Riyadh Angels Investors (RAI), with participation from Techstars Accelerator, Ithraa Venture Capital, 100 Ventures, Lucrative Ventures and Super Angel Investors.
Founded in 2020 by Mohamed Hassan and Omar Fathy, Glamera provides B2B services to beauty and lifestyle service providers. It also provides a B2C marketplace where consumers can find such providers and book sessions with them.
The new fund will be used to continue developing and launching new services, as well as expanding into additional GCC markets.
CardoO, an Egyptian manufacturer of IoT devices, has raised $660,000 in seed funding led by The Alexandria Angels, with participation from Sofico Investments, angel investors from Saudi Arabia, and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD).
Founded in 2018 by Ahmed Adel, CardoO offers smart devices at low prices that are enhanced by IoT technology.
The new investment will allow CardoO to improve its products while also allowing local manufacturers to produce consumer electronics with IoT under the CardoO brand.
Spleet, a Nigerian real estate technology startup, has raised $2.6M in a seed round led by MaC Venture Capital. Eduardo Campos, Noemis Ventures, Plug and Play Ventures, Metaprop VC, HoaQ Fund, Assembly Fund, Ajim Capital, Francis Fund Paulo Buchicher and Maajed Chaaaraoui were also present.
Founded in 2018 by Akintola Adesanmi and Daniela Ajala, Spleet allows tenants to rent properties and pay monthly rent while also giving landlords the option of receiving rent yearly.
The funds will be used to expand the company’s product offerings for landlords, real estate brokers, and tenants across Nigeria, as well as to explore new markets.
Talk360, a South African VoIP startup, has raised an additional $3M in seed funding from Allan Gray E2 Ventures (AGEV), Kalon Venture Partners, E4E Africa, Endeavor, existing lead investor HAVAC, and a number of angel investors, including Tjaart van der Walt and Coenraad Jonker, bringing the round’s total investment to $7 million.
Founded in 2016 by Dutch entrepreneurs Hans Osnabrugge and Jorne Schamp and South African venture builder Dean Hiine, the company allows people all over the world to make reliable and affordable calls to any landline or mobile phone in the world.
The new funds will be used to launch a pan-African payment platform next year and expand its VoIP market share.
Pre-Series A
Tanda, a Kenyan agency banking startup, has raised an undisclosed amount in pre-Series A funding from HAVAIC as well as three other investors, including DFS Lab.
Founded in 2018 by Geoffrey Mulei and Alex Wilson, Tanda allows shop owners to access inventory on credit while also becoming access points for essential services such as airtime, utility payments, banking, and insurance for their customers.
Over the next 15 months, Tanda will use the funds to invest in key strategic partners, accelerate product development, and scale in Kenya and East Africa.
Series A
Chari, a Moroccan B2B e-commerce startup, has raised $1M in Series A funding from Endeavor Catalyst.
Sophia Alj and Ismael Belkhayat founded Chari in 2020 with the goal of digitizing the retail value chain in Francophone Africa. It provides a marketplace and embedded finance platform that connects small businesses and retailers with FMCG suppliers.
This investment will allow Chari to strengthen its continental expansion and begin its shift to fintech by financing the acquisition of Axa Credit, subject to central bank approval.
Other deals
Cryptyd Inc, an Egyptian gaming platform, has secured an undisclosed amount of new funding from existing and new investors.
Founded in 2015 by Ahmed Alaa, Cryptyd Inc creates games that promote native artwork while gamifying the user experience and incorporating cultural elements to attract users and foster a social and competitive gaming experience.
The new round will be used to support the company’s flagship product, Baloot Quest, targeted at GCC markets, as well as the pre-production phases of the new IP secured by the company for its next game, targeted at global markets.
Livestock Wealth, a South African crowd-farming startup, has raised ZAR10 million (US$550,000) from the Mineworkers Investment Company (MIC) via the Khulisani Ventures investment vehicle.
Ntuthuko Shezi founded Livestock Wealth in 2015 to help clients invest in tangible, growing agricultural assets such as cattle breeding, free-range oxen, organic garden tunnels, and macadamia trees through its platform. The funds will be used to assist the startup’s international expansion.
Easy Matatu, a Ugandan minibus ridesharing service, has raised an undisclosed sum from Renew Capital, an impact investment firm focused on developing SMEs in Africa through its network of investors, the Renew Capital Angels.
Founded in 2019 by Andrew Ssali, Lema Carl Andrew, and Precious Turinawe, Easy Matatu provides commuters with reliable, convenient, and environmentally friendly transportation options. Easy Matatu’s end-to-end technological platform will be expanded with funding.
Venture Fund
Algebra Ventures, an Egypt-based venture capital firm, has completed a $100M first close of its second fund, exceeding the target of $90 million. It is expected to make the final close by the end of Q1 2023.
Algebra’s second fund, founded in 2016 by Karim Hussein, Tarek Assaad, and Ziad Mokhtar, is backed by existing LPs from the first fund, including IFC, EBRD, and EAEF. FMO, BII, MSMEDA, and DGGF are among the new investors.
Algebra intends to invest $15 million in startups by the end of 2022, while also exploring investment opportunities in East and West Africa; however, Egypt remains the primary focus.
Purple Elephant Ventures, a Kenyan tourism-focused startup studio, has raised $1M in pre-seed capital to help launch the next generation of entrepreneurs who will use technology to modernize the industry.
The Untours Foundation, a Canadian investment firm, Klister Credit Corp., and a number of angel investors participated in the funding round, including Fede Pirzio-Biroli, Ian McCaig, Rich Hoops, Anthony Rock and Jim Villanueva.
Purple Elephant Ventures plans to launch four startups each year at the intersection of tourism, climate, and technology.
Launches and M&A
Calendly, a scheduling automation platform, has acquired Prelude, a recruiting operations company, in an undisclosed deal.
Calendly claims that the acquisition will accelerate its vision of solving external scheduling challenges holistically for individuals and teams in businesses of all sizes, from SMB to enterprise.
Swvl, an Egypt-based startup, has expanded its services to Switzerland under the brand name myBux, where it has set up 81 “digital stops” for consumers.
Swvl, which was founded in 2017, currently serves 115 cities in 18 countries across Latin America, Europe, Africa, and Asia.
AU-Startup Highlights
Mena startups raised $173 million in September 2022
Access Bank to acquire majority equity stake in Angolan-based Finibanco
VC and private equity investors bank on African tech boom
Fintech, edtech investment dominate SA venture capital
Venture capital investment in Africa is headed towards another record year
Google delivers on $1B commitment to Africa, announces First Cloud Region on the Continent
Top 10 Finalists emerge for Africa’s Business Heroes (ABH) 2022
Diaspora Remittance to Nigeria Hits $10.11 billion in H1 2022
Sendy conducts second round of layoffs, 20% of its remaining staff affected
Google picks South Africa for its first cloud region in Africa
The Nigerian federal government is taking Mark Zuckerberg to court over breach of Nigerian law
These are the most innovative African countries in 2022
Interesting Finds
What’s next for creator-focused startups now that the venture boom is over? (TechCrunch)
How tech start-ups can navigate working with corporate SA (Venture Burn)
How African fintechs can achieve regulatory compliance (TechCabal)
How to make investors take you seriously (Venture Burn)
Green tech startups in Africa are attracting investor interest (TechCabal)
How Nigeria’s leading startups build and maintain thriving communities (Benjamin Dada)
Why start-ups with flat organisational structures often fail (Venture Burn)
Events
The world’s largest tech and start-up event, Gitex Global 2022 commences in Dubai next week.
The countdown begins for Africa Fintech Summit in Cape Town. Register here.
Africa’s top finance leaders to gather at #AFIS2022.
Opportunities
The DAI Magister Academy is looking to support African start-up founders in scaling. Find more details here.
2022 AR/VR Africa Metathon
Benefits: Over $150,000 worth of prizes and funding
Application closes: November 16, 2022
And that’s a wrap on this week’s AU-Startups African funding review. Remember to share with your friends and colleagues if you received any value at all.
