Meet the 44 Startups in Africa that have Raised $1M+ in 2019

A total number of 44 startups in Africa have raised more than $1 million to date across various sectors.

The list was published by Maxime Bayen on Twitter to his followers. Bayen works for GSMA Ecosystem Accelerator, an organisation that fosters partnerships between innovative start-ups and mobile network operators.

The list highlights the dates the money was raised, the country with the company's headquarters as well as the sector in which the company operates.

The startups have raised a cumulative $450 million from the beginning of January to July.

Companies headquartered in South Africa, Nigeria and Kenya dominate the list. 85% of the companies that are registered on the list come from these three countries.

One statistic that is not shocking is that no company from a Francophone country makes it to the list. This still shows how the former colonies of France have not managed to rise with the rest of African counterparts and still suffer serious patronage to their former colonial masters.

Dominating the list are fintech companies which make up to 34% of the companies. This is a reflection of the growing financial services industry in Africa which has witnessed innovation moving to unlock the value of Africa's unbanked population.

However, the list only has three agricultural startups working solving what may be the biggest of the continent's problems.

Other companies such as Nigeria's TeamApt which raised $5 million in February have not been focused on the consumer. They have been developing solutions for large corporates. The Lagos-based company has been helping Nigerian banks develop payment gateways.

Making the list of the stars are 8 startups which were founded or co-founded by women. These are Andela (Nigeria), PayItUP (Woman CEO), InstaDeep (Tunisia), BitPesa (Woman CEO, Kenya), SweepSouth (Woman CEO, South Africa),  Neopenda (Woman CEO, Uganda), Farmcrowdy (Nigeria) and MdaaS Global (Nigeria).

The top 10 of the deals account for 75% of the investments that have been received so far. Other companies are still raising lower sums, nevertheless, the future looks bright and promising for the innovators.

However, it is challenged that the African origins of these startups as many are founded by expats and have European DNA. The increased scepticism comes after the revelations about Jumia that emerged soon after its IPO earlier this year.

Below is the list as originally published on Twitter.

Header Image Credits: VGP News