When Stripe-subsidiary Paystack raised its seed round of $1.3 million in 2016, it was one of the largest disclosed rounds at that stage in Nigeria. At the time, seven-figure seed investments in African startups were a rarity. But over the years, those same seed-stage rounds have become more common, with some very early-stage startups even ... Never in my five-plus decades has a year been so eagerly anticipated, which makes this business of prediction particularly daunting. I’m generally inclined to be optimistic, but rose-colored glasses stretch time. Good things always take longer to emerge than any of us would wish. Over 18 years of doing this I’ve learned that it’s best ... Umba, a digital bank for emerging markets and aiming first at Africa, has secured a $2 million seed funding round from new investors including Lachy Groom, ex-Head of Issuing at Stripe; Ludlow Ventures; Frontline Ventures and Act Venture. Currently operating in Kenya and Nigeria, Umba offers a digital financial service alternative to legacy African banks. ... With great technology, collaboration and a commitment to stop the Ivory trade that leads to most elephant deaths, there’s a real chance to save these singular creatures. ...
Colomys are named for their long feet that allow them to navigate shallow waters while hunting for prey. Read more...More about Mashable Video, Africa, Species, Mice, and Science ...
The Star Feminine Band is a whole lot of girl power. The seven member all-female group hails from a remote West African town called Natitingou, a place where "forced marriages and early pregnancies" are all too common. Their self-titled debut album... ... Pan-African fintech company Interswitch plans to fire up its corporate venture arm again—according to CEO Mitchell Elegbe—who spoke at TechCrunch Disrupt on Wednesday. The Nigerian founder didn’t offer much new on the Lagos-based firm’s expected IPO, but he did reveal Interswitch will revive investments in African startups. Founded by Elegbe in 2002, Interswitch pioneered the ... The market for female-focused health products (aka ‘femtech’) is set for growth via segmentation, per an analyst note from PitchBook which identifies opportunities for entrepreneurs to target a growing number of health issues that specifically affect women or affect women in a specific way — broadening out from a traditional focus on reproductive health. Femtech ... One of the areas of autonomous driving technology with the most potential to have a near-term and dramatic impact remains trucking: There’s a growing lack of drivers for long-haul routes, and highway trucking remains a relatively uncomplicated (though still very challenging) type of driving for AV systems to tackle. Many companies are pursuing the challenge ... Mobile device maker HMD Global has announced a $230M Series A2 — its first tranche of external funding since a $100M round back in 2018 when it tipped over into a unicorn valuation. Since late 2016 the startup has exclusively licensed Nokia’s brand for mobile devices, going on to ship some 240M devices to date. ...
Posts Tagged ‘africa’
How fintech and serial founders drove African pre-seed investing to new heights in 2020
Predictions 2021: Disinformation, SPACs, Africa, Facebook, and a Return to Tech Optimism
Umba, a digital bank for emerging markets, raises $2M Seed funding to expand across Africa
Can artificial intelligence give elephants a winning edge?
Newly discovered mice live in water, have kangaroo-like feet – Future Blink
This all-female West African band aim at empowering girls in debut album
Interswitch to revive its Africa venture fund, CEO confirms
Femtech poised for growth beyond fertility
Waymo’s Boris Sofman and TuSimple’s Xiaodi Hou to join us at TC Sessions: Mobility 2020
Google, Nokia, Qualcomm are investors in $230M Series A2 for Finnish phone maker, HMD Global