Tech startups in Africa raise US$1 billion in 2 months

According to Disrupt Africa, the continent’s tech startup ecosystem has raised a combined US$1 billion (US$1,123,556,000) in the first two months of 2022.

The report states that this is the first time that the African tech startup ecosystem has achieved this feat. Disrupt Africa’s total figure for 2021 was US$2,148,517,500 which differs from other figures we have seen that estimate that the figure is much higher. At any rate, the figures that Disrupt Africa is tracking are still remarkable.

For African startups to make half what they made in 2021 in just two months shows that there is a serious appetite for what entrepreneurs on the continent are doing.

Countries leading the charge

As you would expect the usual suspects are at the forefront of this. Nigeria, Kenya and South Africa are the ones at the front of the pack. Nigeria, in particular, has 33 who have raised US$364,598,000 which is 32.5% of the US$1 billion. Kenya is second with US$223,450,000 and South Africa in third with US$219,930,000.

According to Disrupt Africa, fintech is a rich bed for investment on the continent (US$434,296,000 in 2022 so far in 2022) which is hardly surprising. Africa has a good number of people who are unbanked. According to a World Bank report from 2014, 350 million adults in Sub-Saharan Africa do not have access to financial services which back then amounted to 17% of the world’s unbanked population.

So it makes sense that investors are funding more businesses with solutions that can bring more people into the fold, money and trade-wise.

It’ll be interesting to see what the figure will be like at the half-year mark.

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