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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
- Rwanda and Zipline signed a historic expansion agreement, making it the first country with nationwide autonomous logistics coverage.
- Algeria is waiving all stock exchange listing fees for startups between 2026 and 2028 to encourage fundraising of up to $3.8 million.
- Pan-African payments company Cellulant appointed decade-long insider Michael Muriuki as its new Chief Product and Technology Officer.
- Attijari Payment and Sobrus signed a partnership to accelerate electronic payments and support the digitalization of Morocco’s pharmaceutical sector.
- Onafriq and PAPSS partnered to launch a pilot for the continent’s first wallet-based outbound payments from Nigeria to Ghana.
💸 Top Funding Rounds
- GoCab raised $45 million from E3 Capital and Janngo Capital for African expansion, empowering gig economy drivers with a drive-to-own model and growing its EV fleet for inclusive and green mobility.
- Lula secured a $21 million local-currency facility from FMO to expand lending capacity for SMEs, addressing the credit gap and leveraging its neobanking platform for growth and financial stability.
- Afreximbank selected eight startups for its accelerator program, offering up to $250,000 in equity, mentorship, and market access, including Fincart.io, OnePort 365, Timon, Zowasel, Gebeya, Fluna, Capsa, and Daba Finance.
💰️ IPO and M&A Watch
- Nigerian fintech Nomba acquired a licensed Canadian payment provider to establish a regulated B2B payments infrastructure and streamline trade with North America.
🏦 About Investors
- Proparco invested in the Helios Climate Fund, bringing total commitments to $250 million to accelerate Africa’s low-carbon transition and deepen its partnership with Helios.
🚀 Startup of the Week
Introducing our Startup of the Week 🏆
GoCab
GoCab, founded in 2024 by former investment bankers Azamat Sultan and Hendrick Ketchemen, is building a fintech-driven mobility platform designed to help gig economy drivers become vehicle owners. Operating across multiple African markets, GoCab offers Shariah-compliant drive-to-own financing, linking repayments directly to driver income while integrating fleet management and mobility services. The company recently secured $45 million in combined equity and debt, led by E3 Capital and Janngo Capital, with backing from KawiSafi Ventures and Cur8 Capital. Under its founding leadership team, GoCab is expanding into new cities, scaling electric vehicles, and developing AI-based credit and fleet tools, positioning itself as a key player in ethical finance, green mobility, and financial inclusion across Africa.
💼 Investor of the Week
Introducing our Investor of the Week 🏆
Helios Investment Partners
Helios Investment Partners, founded in 2004 by Babatunde Soyoye and Tope Lawani, is one of Africa’s leading private equity and private credit investors, with a pan-African strategy spanning growth equity, buyouts, and listed investments. Headquartered in London with offices in Paris, Lagos, and Nairobi, Helios focuses on sectors including financial services, digital infrastructure, power, and technology. Its latest milestone came with the second closing of the Helios Climate Fund at around $250 million, backed by Proparco, alongside EIB and BII, to accelerate Africa’s low-carbon transition. With over $2.5 billion invested across 35+ countries, Helios positions itself as a long-term capital partner scaling African champions while driving sustainable and climate-aligned growth.
🤑 Opportunities Expiring Soon
Y Combinator — Spring 2026 Batch
- 📢 Organizer: Y Combinator
- 🗂️ Category: Accelerator, Funding
- 🪜 Target Stages: Pre-seed, Seed
- 🏭 Focus Sectors: Sector Agnostic
- 📅 Application Deadline: February 10, 2026
CivicHive Civic Tech Fellowship
- 📢 Organizer: CivicHive
- 🗂️ Category: Incubator, Training & Learning
- 🪜 Target Stages: Ideation, Pre-seed, Seed
- 🏭 Focus Sectors: Social & Governance, AI & Data, Energy & Environment, Agriculture & Food, Health & Life Sciences, Education & Workforce, Legal & RegTech, Software & IT, Cybersecurity & Privacy, Infrastructure & Smart Cities
- 📅 Application Deadline: February 11, 2026
AgriTech4Tunisia Innovation Challenge
- 📢 Organizer: CGIAR
- 🗂️ Category: Accelerator, Training & Learning
- 🪜 Target Stages: Pre-seed, Seed
- 🏭 Focus Sectors: Agriculture & Food, Energy & Environment, Finance & Insurance, Software & IT, AI & Data
- 📅 Application Deadline: February 12, 2026
Qualcomm Make in Africa Startup Mentorship Program 2026
- 📢 Organizer: Qualcomm
- 🗂️ Category: Incubator, Training & Learning
- 🪜 Target Stages: Pre-seed, Seed
- 🏭 Focus Sectors: AI & Data, Connectivity & Networks, Software & IT, DeepTech
- 📅 Application Deadline: February 15, 2026
Scale Your Impact with Start it @KBC
- 📢 Organizer: KBC Group
- 🗂️ Category: Accelerator
- 🪜 Target Stages: Stage Agnostic
- 🏭 Focus Sectors: Sector Agnostic
- 📅 Application Deadline: February 16, 2026
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