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Welcome to another edition of 🔍 Startup Researcher - Asia, your essential digest delivering the latest news and premium insights on startups and venture capital across the region 🌏️
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📰 Important News
- Paystack relaunched Zap as a checkout payment option, embedding it into merchant flows after an eight month dispute with Nigeria’s central bank.
- Fynd expanded into South Africa, partnering with Surtee Group to deploy its unified commerce stack, marking a notable India-to-Africa retail tech move.
- MNZL secured dual digital lending licenses, including Egypt’s first digital mortgage license, enabling regulated, fast asset-backed loans.
- Cassava Technologies and Gebeya launched Gebeya Dala, Africa’s first AI-powered creator platform built on local, sovereign infrastructure.
- PayTabs partnered with Edita inEgypt to digitize cash collection across its large distribution network, improving efficiency and cash flow management.
💸 Top Funding Rounds
- Lagride secured a $100 million facility from UBA to scale its Drive-to-Own program and enable 3,500 drivers to own vehicles.
- Nawah Scientific raised $23 million in Series A funding to expand its cloud lab model into Rwanda and Saudi Arabia, a decade after launch.
- IFC is considering up to a $13 million equity investment in Egypt’s Breadfast as part of a pre-Series C round backing its vertically integrated grocery model.
- Kayko landed $1.2 million seed round backed by Burrow Capital to use data to unlock financial access for SMEs across Rwanda.
- iVoiceUp secured an investment led by A15 to expand its AI ethics platform across Egypt, KSA, and the UAE.
🏦 About Investors
- Morocco launched a $140 million Digital 2030 program to build 1,000 startups by 2026 and 3,000 by 2030, signaling a major push for the local tech ecosystem.
- Innovate Africa Fund has released its inaugural Year in Review, confirming it has backed three startups from 5,600 applicants.
🚀Startup of the Week
Introducing our Startup of the Week 🏆
Nawah Scientific
Nawah Scientific, founded in 2015 in Cairo by pharmaceutical scientist Dr. Omar Shokry Sakr, is redefining access to research infrastructure across emerging markets through its cloud lab model. The platform enables scientists and companies to run experiments remotely, having already processed over one million samples for clients in more than 30 countries. The company recently closed a $23 million Series A, a blended equity and debt round led by Life Ventures Holding with backing from AfricInvest and Elsewedy, among others. The funding will support expansion into Rwanda and Saudi Arabia, including a new regional R&D hub. Nawah’s mission is clear, to democratize high-quality scientific research at global scale.
💼 Investor of the Week
Introducing our Investor of the Week 🏆
Innovate Africa Fund
Innovate Africa Fund, founded in 2024, is an early stage angel investment fund built to close Africa’s idea stage funding gap through a rigorously founder-first, product first model. Launched with $2.5 million, the fund backs concept stage teams tackling structural challenges across security, employment, and infrastructure, combining capital with structured experimentation. In its first year, it selected TNKR, Oikus, and AddressMe from more than 5,600 applicants, with TNKR and Oikus securing 5x follow on angel capital within months. Led by Kristin Wilson alongside co-founder Christian Idiodi, the fund differentiates through Wicked Innovation Labs, positioning itself as a disciplined launchpad for Africa’s next generation of resilient founders.
🤑 Opportunity Radar
Call for Applications: The Startup Innovation Challenge 2026
Applications are now open for the Startup Innovation Challenge 2026 by Energie AG Oberösterreich, a global opportunity for startups building solutions in energy, AI, and sustainability. Apply by 4 January 2026 to compete for up to $50,000 in PoC funding, hands-on collaboration with an energy utility, and access to technical experts and real-world data; collaboration is primarily remote, with optional engagement in Austria. The program targets early- to growth-stage startups and professional teams ready to pilot validated solutions, with Pitch Day scheduled for March 2026. Apply now to partner with an established energy group and accelerate your path to enterprise deployment.
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