Nigerian fintech Appzone raises $10M for expansion and proprietary technology
– Appzone, a fintech software provider, raised $10m in Series A funding.
– The round was led by Naspers Ventures and joined by other investors.
– The company plans to use the funding to expand its product portfolio and grow its customer base.
MFS Africa leads $2.3M seed round in Ugandan fintech startup Numida
– Ugandan fintech startup Numida is announcing the close of its $2.3m seed round.
– The round was led by Africa-based VC firm Savannah Fund, and joined by other investors including 500 Startups, and angel investors including Y Combinator’s Adora Cheung, and others.
– Numida is tackling the challenge of financial inclusion in East Africa.
– The company offers a digital platform that enables semi-formal micro and small businesses to access credit.
Ovex Raises $4M in Funding
– Ovex is a Cape Town, South Africa-based cryptocurrency exchange platform specializing in OTC trading and arbitrage, offering South Africa’s largest selection of digital asset markets.
– The company raised $4m in funding.
– The round was led by Quantitative cryptocurrency trading firm Alameda Research, developer of FTX, a crypto derivatives exchange.
– The company intends to use the funds to expand into Dubai, Nairobi, Quebec, and London, as well as Lagos when the Nigerian central bank loosens its cryptocurrency ban.
Uganda’s Tugende closes $3.6M Series A extension to meet the demand for its asset finance products
– Ugandan technology-enabled asset finance company Tugende today announced that it has closed $3.6 million in a Series A extension round.
– The investment, which, according to the company, was agreed on and structured in 2020, follows the $6.3 million raised in November 2020 and led by Toyota Tsusho investment fund Mobility 54. This brings Tugende’s total Series A financing to $9.9 million.
– San Francisco and Paris-based VC firm, Partech led the round. Enza Capital participated, alongside some unnamed angel investors.
– Michael Wilkerson founded Tugende in 2012. The company uses asset finance, technology and a customer support model to help micro, small and medium-sized enterprises own income-generating assets.
Nigerian fintech of the unbanked Bankly raises $2M led by Vault
– Bankly, a Nigerian fintech startup digitizing cash for the unbanked, announced that it has closed a $2m seed round.
– The round was led by 500 Startups and joined by other investors including the co-founder of Transferwise.
– The company is digitizing the informal thrift collections system known with different names such as esusu or ajo in Nigeria.
Ghana’s Redbird raises $1.5M seed to expand access to rapid medical testing in sub-Saharan Africa
– Ghanaian healthtech startup Redbird raised $1.5m seed funding.
– Investors who participated in the round include Johnson & Johnson Foundation, Newton Partners (via the Imperial Venture Fund), and Founders Factory Africa.
– The company was launched in 2018 by Patrick Beattie, Andrew Quao and Edward Grandstaff.
– It enables pharmacies in Ghana to add rapid diagnostic testing for 10 different health conditions to their pharmacy services.
Nigeria’s Termii raises $1.4M seed led by Future Africa and Kepple Africa Ventures
– Termii, a Nigerian communications platform-as-a-service startup, raised $1.4m seed funding.
– The round was co-led by African early-stage VC firm Future Africa and Japanese but Africa-focused VC Kepple Africa Ventures.
– Other investors include Acuity Ventures, Aidi Ventures, Assembly Capital, Kairos Angels, Nama Ventures, RallyCap Ventures and Remapped Ventures.
– Angel investors like Ham Serunjogi, co-founder and CEO of Chipper Cash; Josh Jones, former co-founder and CTO, Dreamhost; and Tayo Oviosu, co-founder and CEO of Paga also participated.
South Africa’s FlexClub adds $5M to seed round to scale its car subscription marketplace
– FlexClub, a South African company, has been provided with $5m to improve drivers’ experience in emerging markets.
– The company is an online marketplace that connects customers looking for flexible access to long-term cars with its partners.
– It offers car subscriptions.
Stitch emerges from stealth with $4M for its API fintech play in Africa
– Stitch, a South African fintech startup, is coming out of stealth and announcing its seed round of $4 million.
– This makes it the largest round raised by any API fintech startup in Africa at the moment.
– The company wants to provide full API access to financial accounts across Africa starting from its first market, South Africa.
– With its API, developers can connect apps to financial accounts. This allows users to share their transaction history and balances, confirm their identities and initiate payments.
South African digital bank TymeBank lands $109M from UK and Philippines investors
– TymeBank, a South African digital bank, secured an investment from new investors in the U.K. and Philippines.
– The company made this known via a statement.
– This investment will be used to bolster TymeBank’s growth and drive its commercial expansion across the country.
– The company offers a transactional bank account with zero or low monthly fees and a savings product.
– Most of its customers are onboarded via physical kiosks, usually in Pick n Pay and Boxer stores around the country.
– Since launching in February 2019, TymeBank has grown rapidly and now has about 2.8 million customers.
– The company says that it’s on track to reach 3 million by the end of next month.
