African Start-Ups Raise $712 Million in Q1
In March, African start-ups raised about $712 million, translating to an increase of 14% month on month and 114% year on year, according to Renaissance Capital’s industry report.
The sum was raised across 99 deals, up 50% month on month and 13% year on year, the investment firm stated. Rencap said year to date, this is about $1.8 billion as against about $729 million in the comparable period in Q1-2021, an increase of 148% year on year, with deal count rising 56% to 256.
Fintech is approximately 40% of the year to date raise, followed by retail and logistics at 14% and 12%, respectively, the report noted.
“While the big four – Nigeria, South Africa, Egypt, and Kenya maintained their stronghold, accounting for about 84% of the year to date funds raised;
“…we observed notable declines in fundraising by South African start-ups, and notable increases in Ghana and Tunisia -both increased by 23x and 138x year on year, respectively”, Rencap said.
