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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
- TIME named Moniepoint, Flutterwave, and Tyme Group among 2025’s most influential firms for driving inclusive fintech globally.
- The Bank of Ghana mandated all VASPs to register by August 15, promoting innovation through transparent digital asset regulation.
- Kuda reentered remittances with a new wallet after strengthening retail, business, and credit services for Nigerians abroad.
- Flutterwave and NoraFirst partnered to enable fast, localized B2B payments between Africa and East Asia in a $250 billion trade corridor.
- LemFi launched in Egypt to serve its diaspora with fast, affordable transfers amid surging remittance inflows and digital adoption.
💸 Top Funding Rounds
- Paymenow raised $22.4 million from Standard Bank to scale earned wage access across Africa while meeting ESG goals and supporting low-income workers.
- Cerebrium secured $8.5 million to scale its serverless AI platform for LLMs and video agents using lean GPU infrastructure trusted by leading AI firms.
- Bfree attracted $3 million from Verdant Capital to acquire distressed loans and help borrowers rebuild credit through ethical, data-driven recovery tools.
💰️ Notable Exits
- Nawy acquired UAE’s SmartCrowd to enter the GCC market with fractional property investing, advancing its vision of a tech-first PropTech super-app.
- Stitch bought Efficacy Payments to gain DCSP status and direct card acquiring control, offering merchants lower costs and faster settlements in South Africa.
- Roqqu acquired Flitaa to enter Kenya’s crypto market via M-PESA integration and regulatory clearance, unlocking East African growth despite Flitaa’s limited user base.
🏦 About Investors
- SECO Startup Fund announced $6.3 million in debt funding with new co-managers Seedstars and iGravity to support startups in Africa and other regions.
🚀 Startup of the Week
Introducing our Startup of the Week 🏆
Paymenow
Founded in 2019 by Bryan Habana and Deon Nobrega, Paymenow is a South African fintech that provides earned wage access to help workers access a portion of their salaries before payday, reducing reliance on predatory lenders. Operating in South Africa, Namibia, and Zambia, the company aims to expand into more African markets where traditional financial services fall short. This week, Paymenow secured a $22.4 million working-capital facility from Standard Bank under a sustainable-finance framework—an endorsement of its mission to drive financial inclusion at scale.
💼 Investor of the Week
Introducing our Investor of the Week 🏆
SECO Startup Fund
Founded in 2000, the SECO Startup Fund (SSF) is a development finance initiative backed by the Swiss Government through the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO), aimed at supporting high-impact ventures in emerging markets. Now co-managed by iGravity and Seedstars, SSF provides flexible debt financing to post-revenue startups aligned with Switzerland’s goals of inclusive growth, climate-smart innovation, and access to essential services. This week, the SSF relaunched its strategy and announced $6.3 million in new debt funding to scale startups across Africa, Asia, Latin America, and Eastern Europe, reinforcing its role as a key player in global entrepreneurial development.
🤑 Opportunity Radar
Call for Applications: XTC AI Energy Innovation Startup Showcase
Applications are now open for the XTC AI Energy Innovation Startup Showcase, a global program spotlighting early-stage startups advancing sustainable energy solutions for AI infrastructure. Selected founders will gain access to global exposure, investor connections, pitch coaching, and the chance to present live in Palo Alto on November 3, 2025. The showcase targets startups with a working MVP focused on AI chips, energy-efficient models, or next-gen data center technologies. Apply now before the deadline on July 30, 2025, and position your startup at the forefront of AI and energy innovation.
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