In this conversation with 54gene COO, Delali Attipoe, she explains in detail what the healthtech startup is all about, why you should care, and what its newly launched genome sequencing lab means for …
Startups
In nearly a decade, hundreds of entrepreneurs have emerged with innovative startups across the African continent. We provide insights on their experiences and highlight the activities of investors who fund them.
“I want to solve problems, save the world, and make money while at it.” – Damilola Olokesusi, Co-founder and CEO of Shuttlers
Damilola Olokesusi is the Co-founder and CEO of tech transport startup, Shuttlers. In this interview, she shares her entrepreneurial journey, and highlights her struggles and opportunities as a female…
5 months after expanding to South Africa, Nigeria’s Kiakiaprint goes to the US and Canada
Following its expansion to South Africa, Kiakiaprint, a Nigerian print-on-demand startup, is now live in the North American countries of Canada and the US. Here’s what you need to know about the expan…
With $950k pre-seed, OnePipe is building a super aggregator for every financial service API in Nigeria
OnePipe aggregates APIs from banks and fintechs into a unified gateway that makes partnerships seamless. Here’s why the Techstars-backed startup raised $950k in pre-seed investment and its plans to fo…
Kenyan healthtech startup, Ilara Health, raises $3.75m Series A led by TLcom Capital
Ilara Health has raised $3.75m to expand its diagnostic reach across Africa. This is two months after receiving a $1.1m grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and securing a $735k seed in…
Senegalese-based solar energy startup, Oolu Solar, raises $8.5m Series B
With over 60,000 solar home systems sold in five African markets since launching in 2015, Senegalese-based solar energy startup, Oolu Solar, has raised $8.5m Series B for product development and expan…
21 out of the 51 West African startups that raised $1m+ in the past decade went through an accelerator
Of the 51 startups that raised $1m or more cumulatively in the past decade, 21 (41.2%) passed through an accelerator. We take a look at some of the reasons why founders choose them in the first place.…
Why SSE Angel Network might explore investing outside Nigeria’s South-South/East region
Since its formation in 2018, the South-South/East Angel Network (SSEAN) has made investments in six startups across Nigeria. However, three of them are based outside the SSE region, in Lagos. Here’s w…
How the Nigerian Stock Exchange plans to win over SMEs, startups
Startups typically access funding through various means like grants, venture capitalists, and angel investors. We take a glance at the new investment route introduced by Nigeria’s stock exchange.…
The need for a bachelor’s degree in tech entrepreneurship in Africa: Myth or fact?
Techpoint Africa’s West African Startup Decade Report reveals that startups that raised over $1m in the last ten years have at least a co-founder with a bachelor’s degree. What does this mean going fo…
Nigerian fintech startup, CredPal raises $1.5m for credit cards launch and expansion
With the aim to become American Express for Africa, Nigerian YC-backed consumer fintech, CredPal, has raised $1.5m to expand outside the country. GreenHouse Capital and Y Combinator participated in t…
How Francophone Africa tech players are breaking down barriers in search of recognition
Although there’s a consensus that Francophone Africa’s tech ecosystem is significantly lagging behind their Anglophone counterparts, several tech players in the region are pushing to bridge the wide g…
Inside the agritech conglomerate Farmcrowdy is building
In 2016, Farmcrowdy launched as an agro crowdfunding platform. Four years later, it’s making a full pivot to a digital agriculture platform serving six businesses to different stakeholders in the agri…
Do more founders in a startup mean more investments?
In the past decade, Millionaire West African Startups with at least two founders raised more money than those with solo founders. We highlight what investors think of this, and if the number of founde…
What makes Nigeria the dominant country in West Africa’s startup space
Techpoint Africa’s West African Startup Decade Report showed a high number of Nigerian startups account for most funding deals up to $1 million. We examine factors that may have caused this whopping 8…
Why foreign investments will keep dominating Nigeria’s startup space
Over the years, Nigerian startups have thrived off the back of foreign funding, the likes of Interswitch and Paystack are now majority-owned by foreign companies. Here’s why this trend will continue f…
Ivorian startup, Afrikrea, is building the online infrastructure for African culture commerce
Kadry Diallo, Luc B. Perussault Diallo, and Moulaye Taboure founded fashion eCommerce startup, Afrikrea, in 2016. With over 7,000 sellers and active commerce in 150 countries, here’s what you ne…
Kenyan bus booking platform, QuickBus raises six-figure round, plans launch in Nigeria and Ghana
QuickBus, a Kenyan bus booking startup, has raised an undisclosed round led by UAE-based Shorooq Partners. It will use the investment for marketing purposes and launch in new African markets.…
Edtech startup, M-Lugha wants to help every Kenyan child learn in their native language
This Kenyan telecoms engineer and information technologist is building interactive digital apps to help rural children learn in over 20 local languages asides Swahili, Kenyan’s official and dominant i…
How Nigerian startup, Blueloop, wants to ease cross-border payments for merchants and gig workers
Backed with $77,000 in pre-seed funding from Hustle Fund, Pioneer, and Mozilla, Nigerian startup Blueloop, wants to ease cross-border payments by combining the best of decentralised finance and regula…
