Small but Mighty 🐛

Africa outperformed most regions in terms of equity growth in 2025, even if its share of global funding remains negligible

Africa’s equity funding climbed 24% YoY in 2025. Put next to the global rebound (+46%), that can look underwhelming. But the global number is a very distorted benchmark because it is overwhelmingly a US story. Indeed, equity funding in the US grew 66% YoY and accounted for roughly 70% of the global tally. So when US mega-rounds accelerate, ‘global funding’ mechanically spikes even if most other regions are growing less. In fact, the ‘rest of the world’ grew +15% YoY in 2025. In that context, Africa’s +24% YoY is not a lagging indicator. 2025 was a genuinely strong year, comparatively. It beat Europe (+18% YoY), LatAm (+17%), China (+19%) and South East Asia (+18%), and it looks even better next to India’s near-flat performance (+1%). So, Yes: Africa remains small in absolute numbers - $2.2b out of roughly $470b globally i.e. 0.4% of the total -, but in terms of YoY dynamics vs peers (outside the US), the continent’s 2025 performance compares well.

This underrepresentation becomes very real when you compare the continent’s numbers to market or city peers. In 2025, start-ups in Africa raised roughly the same amount of equity as in Sweden (~$2b) and sits in the same bracket as a single city like Toronto, Canada (~$2.4b). Brazil (~$2.6b) is slightly ahead. KSA (~$1.7b) and Raleigh, USA (~$1.7b) are not far behind. In India, one vertical slice - fintech (~$2.4b) - matches Africa’s continent-wide total. There’s an upside to being an underdog though: for seasoned investors, that mismatch is an opportunity. The best gains often come from markets not yet mature, where allocation is still thin relative to potential…

A quick note on sources: We’ve only used equity numbers here, for comparability’s sake. The Africa numbers come from our own Africa: The Big Deal proprietary database, of course. For Indian fintech, we have used Tracxn; and MAGNiTT for KSA. For all other cities and markets, as well as for global and regional trends, we’ve used CB Insights.

Now, if you want to go beyond totals and high-level trends, our database lets you dig into the deals behind this 2025 rebound by country, city, sector, stage and ticket size, with investor data as well. Don’t forget to claim your discount here. And to check our ‘Data for Founders’ initiative for a chance to be one of the 100 start-ups selected for a free two-year subscription, and more. Bye for now! Max