Article summary
- Despite the slow funding for startups across Africa in Q1 2023, Nigerian startups were able to seal some funding deals.
- The quarter was unusually silent for Nigerian fintechs, while an agritech sealed the biggest deal in the quarter.
- Funds raised by Nigerian startups in Q1 were mostly at the pre-seed and seed stages.
The year 2023 began on a slow note for Nigerian startups in terms of fundraising. This is not surprising, given the many projections foresaw the negative impacts the global economic whirlwind would have on the global tech industry.
That notwithstanding, some Nigerian startups were able to seal some funding deals in the first quarter of the year, though not as heavy as last year. However, the digits have gone shorter for the startups in Q1 2023, compared to 2022.
Important details to note
The first quarter was a bit silent for the Nigerian fintechs, who had consistently topped funding rounds in the startup ecosystem. And surprisingly, for the first time in many quarters, an agritech topped the table in Q1 2023. Also, the funds raised by Nigerian startups in Q1 were mostly at pre-seed and seed stages, which explains why the figures were a bit low.
While over 30 Nigerian companies secured funding in the period under review, here are the top 10 startups that sealed the biggest deals in Q1 2023:
Releaf ($3.3 million)
Releaf, a Nigerian agritech startup that supplies ingredients to consumer goods manufacturers and their food factories, raised $3.3 million in a pre-Series A funding round.
The funding round was led by Samurai Incubate Africa, who re-invested after leading Releaf’s seed round, with participation from Consonance Investment Managers. Stephen Pagliuca (Chairman of Bain Capital) and Jeff Ubben (Board member at World Wildlife Fund and Founder of Inclusive Capital Partners) also invested. Releaf, which is backed by the Jack Ma Foundation, previously raised $4.2 million (including a $1.5 million grant) in September 2021.
The company said the new funding would be deployed to launch two new technologies: Kraken II – a portable version of its award-winning palm nut de-sheller and SITE – a geospatial mapping application that informs the most profitable positioning of food processing assets.
Curacel ($3 million)
Insurtech startup Curacel, an AI-powered platform for claims processing and fraud management in Africa, secured US$3 million in seed funding to roll out new solutions and support its expansion into North Africa. Formed in 2017, Curacel automates the insurance claims process, allowing staff to process claims volumes quickly and efficiently, and automatically vets claim to detect fraud, waste and abuse.
The investment will also support the company’s expansion into North Africa.
Investors in the round include Tencent, AAF Management, Elefund, Blue Point Capital Partners, Pioneer Fund, Olive Tree Capital and Y Combinator, as well as James Park (CEO of Fitbit), Olugbenga “GB” Agboola (CEO of Flutterwave), Babs Ogundeyi (CEO of Kuda) and other strategic investors. Top executives from Covergenius, Zopper and Pie Insurance will also join Curacel’s advisory board as part of the round.
SunFi ($2.325 million)
SunFI, a Nigerian clean tech startup, raised $2.325 million in seed funding. The company’s CEO, Rotimi Thomas, said the investment would help SunFi grow its operations and improve its capabilities to recommend the best systems at the lowest cost to customers.
The funding was led by Nairobi-based Factor[e] and Sterling Bank’s SCM Capital Asset Management. Other participating investors include Voltron Capital, Norrsken Impact Accelerator, Ventures Platform and Sovereign Capital.
Shekel Mobility ($1.950 million)
Shekel Mobility, a Nigerian mobility fintech startup In an over-subscribed pre-seed round, Shekel Mobility raised $1,950,000. The funding round was led by Ventures Platform with participation from other strategic investors including Y Combinator, Voltron Capital, Zedcrest and other angel investors.
The mobility startup launched operations in January 2022 and has since grown to power $19M+ worth of transactions with over 1,000 dealers in their ecosystem. This traction, coupled with the validity of the business solution has gotten them selected for the Y Combinator Winter 2023 Batch.
Clinify ($1.5 million)
Clinify, founded in 2020 by Michael Omidele to help digitise and centralise medical records across Africa’s healthcare system and improve patient outcomes, has raised $1.5 million in seed funding in February this year.
The funding round had participation from Thin Air Labs, HaloHealth, and Calgary doctors. Clinify plans to launch its electronic medical record (EMR) platform in Africa this year, beginning with Nigeria.
Fez Delivery ($1 million)
Fez Delivery, a logistics and delivery company, raised a $1 million seed funding round to accelerate its development and grow its team. Founded in 2020 by Seun Alley, Fez Delivery began life offering janitorial services to businesses, but the janitors suffered from absenteeism because they were running errands for employees.
The startup’s $1 million seed round was led by Ventures Platform, with participation from Voltron Capital, Acasia Ventures (formerly Cairo Angels), and other angel investors.
Pakam ($635,000)
Nigerian Waste Recycling Management App, Pakam, raised a pre-seed investment of $635,000. Pakam intends to achieve waste scarcity through digital tools while also developing a strong circular economy.
The company said the cash would be utilised to strengthen the company’s ecosystem products and link all of the dots in the ecosystem value chain.
PressOne Africa ($600,000)
PressOne Africa, a startup building business phone system for entrepreneurs, raised $600K in a pre-seed round led by Ventures Platform, along with participation from Voltron Capital and a set of stellar angels.
Founded by Mayowa Okegbenle and Opeyemi Shokunbi, PressOne helps business owners monitor all customer phone conversations made by staff or team members from anywhere at any time from their computer or mobile device. Entrepreneurs can track conversations, see notes, and follow up with customers. This way they can maintain a high quality of service, attract, and retain more customers.
Trade Lenda ($520,000)
Fintech startup, Trade Lenda, which helps micro, small and informal retailers with access to financing for their business needs, also raised $520,000 in pre-seed funding to speed its growth.
Founded in 2021, the Lagos-based Trade Lenda helps small businesses get quick and affordable access to credit with zero upfront collateral within six hours. The startup’s data-driven credit-scoring platform evaluates character and capacity to bridge access to quick and efficient finance gaps for small retailers and suppliers.
The funding came from Africa-focused investors including Sovereign Capital, ARM Labs, and Expert Dojo, as well as a couple of Nigeria-based angel investors.
HouseAfrica ($400,000)
Nigeria’s HouseAfrica, a prop-tech startup providing real estate digitalisation and transparency tools to property developers and their customers raised US$400,000 in funding.
Founded in 2019 by Nnamdi Uba and Ndifreke Ikpoku, HouseAfrica aims to enhance the real estate industry’s efficiency and trust by leveraging innovative technologies.
The company said the US$400,000 funding round would be used to deepen the startup’s technology, increase adoption, and grow its team. HouseAfrica is backed by investors such as Future Africa, SSE Angel Network (SSEAN), ARM Labs, CV VC, Startupbootcamp AfriTech, Niche Capital, and Rebel Seed Capital.