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Welcome to another edition of 🔍 Startup Researcher - Africa, your essential digest delivering the latest news and premium insights on startups and venture capital across the region 🌍
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📰 Important News
- A South African team won the Innovate Africa Fund hackathon with Address Me, a platform creating verifiable addresses for township residents.
- Tigran Gambaryan left Binance after leading compliance reforms and facing detention in Nigeria, amid wider leadership exits.
- Nigeria launched an AI accelerator with Meta, using Llama models to back startups in health, agriculture, and security.
- A former executive sued Moniepoint for $889,000 in vested stock, alleging the company blocked access despite written assurances.
- Yellow Card denied links to Yellow Pay after a warning from Ghana’s central bank, affirming its legal status and regulatory support.
💸 Top Funding Rounds
- Moove entered talks to raise $300 million, aiming for unicorn status as it expands advanced autonomous mobility globally.
- Nile closed an $11.3 million round led by Cathay AfricInvest and FMO to grow its agri-marketplace and traceability tools for Southern African farmers.
- MyNextCar secured $10 million to scale Bolt Lite with 1,500 compact cars across South Africa, boosting youth jobs and affordable ride-hailing.
- Salus Cloud raised $3.7 million in seed funding to expand its AI-native DevOps tools across Africa and MENA, tackling startup infrastructure gaps.
- WeThinkCode obtained a $2 million Google.org grant to train 12,000 learners in AI skills across South Africa and Kenya, bridging the talent gap.
💰️ Notable Exits
- CreditChek has acquired U.S.-based CreditCliq to help African immigrants access credit globally by translating their native credit histories for international lenders and expanding into new markets.
🏦 About Investors
- Super Capital has launched a MEA-focused investment club with Axel Peyriere to fund up to 10 startups yearly in the Middle East and Africa with $115,000–$290,000 tickets and strategic support.
- Silverbacks Holdings achieved a fivefold return from a partial exit in Nigeria’s OmniRetail, reinforcing its stellar track record and highlighting Africa’s rising appeal for high-growth investments.
🚀 Startup of the Week
Introducing our Startup of the Week 🏆
Nile
Nile, a South African agri-tech startup founded in 2021 by Louis de Kock, Eugene Roodt, and Rick Kleynhans, is revolutionizing fresh produce trading with digital tools that enhance price transparency, product quality, traceability, and access to financing. The company has raised $11.3 million in a funding round led by Cathay AfricInvest and FMO to expand its digital marketplace and financial solutions across Southern Africa. Backed by strong investor confidence and growing farmer adoption, Nile is now building a comprehensive ecosystem to make agriculture more efficient, inclusive, and profitable.
💼 Investor of the Week
Introducing our Investor of the Week 🏆
Super Capital
Super Capital, a Paris-based angel investment network and early-stage financing group founded in 2018, has invested over $34.25 million in 150 startups across Europe through a mix of equity and non-dilutive funding. Expanding its global reach, the firm launched a Middle East and Africa investment club in partnership with seasoned investor Axel Peyriere to fund up to 10 startups per year with $115,000–$290,000 tickets. The initiative targets high-growth sectors like fintech, SaaS, and healthtech, combining capital with strategic support to scale innovation in underserved MEA markets.
🤑 Opportunity Radar
Call for Applications: DPI for People and Planet Challenge
Apply to the DPI for People and Planet Challenge by July 2025 to turn your climate-tech idea into a real-world solution. Open to startups, nonprofits, research labs, and social enterprises from around the globe, this challenge offers up to $100,000 in grant funding, expert mentorship, and the chance to pitch at COP30 in Brazil. Whether you're building a new DPI-powered tool or scaling an existing solution, this is your opportunity to gain global visibility, access investors, and receive strategic support to bring your idea to life. Applications are now open — join the movement to innovate for people and the planet.
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