A 2025 analysis reveals over $50M in angel-backed deals as organized networks professionalize to fill the pre-seed void, but a total lack of exits poses a long-term threat.
A mix of established mini-grid operators, a family-run business, and a media giant's new energy venture are among the first to receive funding to build hundreds of solar mini-grids across Nigeria.
The Cairo-based fintech fund has joined the Moroccan B2B e-commerce startup's Series A extension, betting on its push into embedded finance and Banking-as-a-Service.
The company, which evolved from its 2012 origins as airtime credit provider Channel VAS, now processes over 31m transactions daily for 120m active monthly users.
The startup will use the seed funding to expand its B2B marketplace that buys surplus and "imperfect" produce from smallholder farmers, aiming to boost incomes and enter new markets.
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.
