Sixteen months later, on a hot July day in 2026, Egypt's finance minister, Ahmed Kouchouk, returned to a company whose public frustration had once laid bare the country's industrial bureaucracy.
Across 29 disclosed deals, African startups and growth-stage companies raised at least $340.5m in February. The number tells one story. How the money moved tells a different one.
Flend, a digital lender for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), has become the first Egyptian company to be officially granted "Startup Label" certification.
Most carbon finance enters the market once a project is already operational. Hummingbirds is moving further upstream to address the supply-side bottleneck.
Sixteen months later, on a hot July day in 2026, Egypt's finance minister, Ahmed Kouchouk, returned to a company whose public frustration had once laid bare the country's industrial bureaucracy.
The new virtual asset rules demand high capital, local custody, and bank-held reserves - creating a moat that traditional lenders are perfectly positioned to fill.
