Opay, Flutterwave Led African Startups in Funding in 2021
- Startups based in Nigeria are leading Africa in terms of funding, especially in the fintech ecosystem
- Digital payment platforms like Opay and Flutterwave have raised trillions of naira in a massive drive to expand
- Their growth was enhanced mainly by the adoption of mobile money and the growth of mobile subscriptions on the continent
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Startups in Africa led by Nigerian-based fintech firms saw a great amount of investment in 2021.
Many startups on the continent closed major deals in the previous year and cumulatively raised more than N2 trillion.
Nigerian tech firms lead the way
TechCrunch reports says of the amount, Nigerian fintech companies like Opay and Fluterwave, all of which are digital payment platforms, raised almost two-third of the amount.
Source: UGC
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Fintech firms ruled the fundraising on the continent, according to a report by TechCrunch, which accounted for almost N124.5 trillion, citing a report by Briter Bridges, a market insight company.
This sum was double the amount raised in 2020 and three times that of 2019, the report said.
The continent's best
Apart from Opay and Flutterwave being the biggest beneficiaries, TymeBank, a Johannesburg-based fintech company raised N74.7 trillion in Series B funding.
Analysts attribute the massive growth to mobile subscriber adoption across Africa. According to them, mobile phone subscription is estimated to grow to 615 million by 2025, which is half the population of the continent’s population.
Startups that focus on digital and mobile payments have received the highest funding over the years followed by banking and lending startups, the report said.
Africa's leading fintech firms
Legit.ng reports that Flutterwave, Jumia and Interswitch are Africa’s biggest startups valued at $1 billion each, all domiciled in Nigeria. The other is Fawry in Egypt, also a $1 billion company.
Nigeria has witnessed a wave of startup explosions this decade, mostly in the fintech space which is attracting massive funding from venture capitalists who are pumping millions of dollars into the ecosystem in the country.
A wave of optimism swirls around the ecosystem in the country with many tech entrepreneurs driving digital inclusion.
Source: Legit.ng
