- Nigerian startups have attracted massive funding in the last couple of years
- From Opay, Moniepoint, Flutterwave and others, startups from Nigeria are ranked the most in Africa’s tech ecosystem
- The companies have attracted massive funding from many top investors across the globe
Nigerian startups have emerged as top choices among global investors and venture capitalists who look to the country for juicy investment opportunities in Africa.
These startups have developed cutting-edge products and services that have attracted global attention, making Nigeria a top investment destination on the continent.
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According to reports, despite the global economic headwinds, Nigerian startups have maintained a surging interest among top funders in the world.
They have attracted over $1.2 billion in funding in 2022, a slight decline from the $1.4 billion figure recorded in 2021.
Startups in Nigeria have crossed all the stages of funding, from pre-series D, with investors pouring millions of dollars into the ecosystem.
Moniepoint – $55.5m
The company, which has redefined the PoS business in Nigeria, announced its biggest funding of more than $50 million to grow its credit offerings in Africa’s biggest economy.
Experts classified Moniepoint’s funding as a pre-series C round despite not having any letter attached to the capital funding.
Top investors were QED Investors and Novastar Ventures which poured $57.5 million into the financial institution after it successfully raised $5.5 million in a Series A round earlier this year.
ThriveAgric -$65.4m
The tech-driven agriculture start-up remains the most funded in the agricultural sector in Nigeria and emerged as one of the top-funded startups.
The firm’s latest funding round was $56.4 million in debt financing from commercial banks and investors announced in March 2023.
The development brought the total funding for the company to about $65.4 million after securing $9 million in funding from other investors.
Konga – $79.5m
The e-commerce company acquired by Zinox Technologies in 20018 had raised about $79.5 million before its acquisition.
Its latest funding round was a $41 million series C round led by Naspers some eight years ago.
The company also raised $25 million in Series B after a $10 million Series A round in 2013 and a $3.5 million seed round in 2012.
Kuda Bank – $91 million
The neobank is among some of the most funded startups in Nigeria.
The digital bank has raised a total of $19.6 million and the latest was a $55 million Series B round announced in August 2021.
In March 2021, the bank raised $25 million in a Series A round by Valar Ventures, after raising $10 million in a seed round of $10 million led by Target.
TradeDepot – $123m
The e-commerce platform which links international brands with small businesses in Africa raised a total of $123 million in funding and another $110 Series B in December 2021.
The company raised $10 million to grow its business into a financial services company and credit offerings for retailers.
It had also raised a $3 million investment in 2018.
Lumos Global – $125m
The Off-Grid Solar firm, Lumos Global has raised a total of $125 million with its latest round being a $25 million financing from the US International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) to grow its existing market for clean solar in Nigeria.
The company also raised $90 million which includes $50 million debt and $40 million in equity.
The investors are Overseas Private Investment Corporation, Pembani Remgra Infrastructure Managers, VLTCM and ICV.
Moove -$335 million
The Nigerian tech-driven mobility firm has gotten funding from several investors, including $76 million raised in August 2023 led by Mubadala Investment firm.
It consists of $28 million in equity, $10 million in venture debt from funds and accounts, and $38 million in previously undisclosed funds in the last year.
The company’s latest funding was in July 2023, when it announced its $8 million financing from Absa Corporate and Investment Banking to boost its existing Suzuki S-Preso vehicles assembled in Ghana.
Moove raised about $183.3 million across funding rounds and $135 million from January and June 2023. It came after another successful funding of $30 million in December last year.
In 2022, Moove raised a total of $183.3 million across five funding rounds. It raised $135 million between January and June, then an additional $30 million in December.
Andela – $381m
Andela is currently valued at about $1.5 billion after it raised $200 million in the September 2021 Series E round through SoftBank’s Vision Fund 2.
The series round earned the company $381 million since it was established in Lagos in 2014. It previously raised $100 million in Series D in 2019.
Also, in 2017, Andela raised $40 million in Series C funding led by CRE venture capital with collaboration from DBL Partners. Amplo, Salesforce Ventures and TLCom Capital.
Flutterwave – $475m
The payment giant and Africa’s biggest unicorn raised a total of $475 million.
Flutterwave’s latest funding came in February last year when it raised $250 million in a Series D round led by investors including Facebook’s co-founder, Eduardo Saverin’s capital firm B Capital Group and Boston-based hedge fund Whale Rock Capital Management.
The company raised $170 million in a Series C round from Tiger Global and Avenir at a $1 billion valuation.
In 2020, Flutterwave raised $35 million in Series B and $20 million in Series A in 2018.
OPay – $570m
The company’s latest round came in August 2021 when it got $400 million led by SoftBank Vision Fund 2. The funding brought the company a $2 billion valuation.
Opay announced funding in 2019, including $50 million in June and $120 million in Series B in November. The Series C round was the largest on record in Africa’s tech scene which brought it at par with Jumia’s similar funding in 2016.
“Who wins?”: Stanbic IBTC, Wema, GTB, others lead battle against Opay, Kuda Bank with fintech subsidiaries
Legit.ng reported that a rising number of Nigeria’s big banks are entering the financial technology space, thereby tightening the fintech space for entrenched players in the industry.
In 2017, when fintech firms became threats and primary disruptors in the financial services ecosystem, it was thought they would battle the big banks to the ground.
But the big banks are pulling their weight and taking the fight to the fintech firms.
Source: Legit.ng
