All key growth indicators are green 💚
After a strong October, start-up funding continues on its upward trajectory
Start-ups in Africa have raised over $442m in funding in October (exc. exits), the second-best month this year, behind July. 76% of the total ($334m) was raised as equity, making it the best performing month in terms of equity funding in 2025 so far. The two largest deals came from Spiro who raised $100m, the largest-ever investment in an e-mobility start-up on the continent, and Moniepoint who topped up their latest mega-round with an extra $90m. Tagaddod, Ctrack, and Mawingu all also raised $20m or more in equity. The rest is almost exclusively debt - in line with the overall trend -, including two large bond issuances: $71m by MNT-Halan and ~$23m by valU. Overall, 53 ventures raised at least $100k last month, which is above average if we compare with the few months.
The good news is that - as we covered in our previous post - it also means that things are looking up for the ecosystem, with all key growth indicators green and double-digit growth (almost) across the board. Indeed, in 2025 so far start-ups in Africa have already raised $2.65 billion in total, which represents +56% growth if we compare to the same period last year. It is also higher than the comparable period in 2023. If we focus exclusively on equity, we see growth once again: +31% YoY, and virtually the same amount as Jan-Oct 2023. Same story when it comes to the number of ventures who have raised at least $1m since the beginning of the year (179, +13% YoY), which is both higher than the same period in 2024 (159) and in 2023 (178). Hopefully the end of 2025 can match the strong closing of 2024 when start-ups had raised $540m in November-December.
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If we look at the past 12 months (Nov 24 - Oct 25), the story is equally encouraging: $3.2 billion were raised over that period (+50% YoY), including $1.9 billion in equity (+38% YoY); 207 ventures (+8% YoY) raised at least $1m over the period. While the performance over the next couple of months will determine how well the ecosystem does in 2025 overall, and whether the upward trend gets confirmed, there is definitely room for optimism…
I (Max) am actually in Cape Town for a few days for a long-overdue visit. I’ll be at the Global DPI Summit this week, and will also catch the beginning of Africacom the Africa Tech Festival (Maxime told me last week I was showing my age when I used the old name) the following week. I hope I get to catch up with some of you here! The weather is absolutely gorgeous in the Mother City, but if it’s raining where you are, remember that you always have our deals database to keep you company ;) Ciao. Max