African Venture Capital 2018 Report – USD 725.6 Mn Invested In 458 Deals
Everything has a ‘history’, and we believe 2018 will go down as a monumental year in the history of the African startup ecosystem. After a thrilling year that 2018 was, we are sure the expectations for 2019 are sky high.
The African tech & startup ecosystem is moving towards market correction this year. According to the WeeTracker’s Venture Investments Report 2018, USD 725.6 Mn was invested across 458 deals — a 300% gigantic leap in the total funding amount and over 127% increase in the number of deals as compared to 2017.
We have carefully collected, crunched and analysed the numbers to help you understand how the ecosystem in Africa is shaping up. Not just this, to become the only destination for African Tech, startups and venture enthusiasts, we are launching our Database product in a few weeks.
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African Venture & Startup Funding Report 2018: Investments Map
The Tech & innovative companies in Africa experienced a healthy inflow of grants and prize money this year, along with the stupendous rise in Venture Capital.
Similar to the global trend, seed funding was once again the most sought-after stage when compared to the total number of deals.
Venture Investments in Africa [Report 2018]: Geographical breakdown
In terms of the number of deals, all inclusive, NIGERIA outperformed all other location with a total of 136 deals. South Africa, which gave it a close competition stood second with 107 deals, followed by Kenya with 73 deals. This trend has a slight deviation from the last year where South Africa had topped the chart.
Joining the race this year along with the investor’s preferred destination are countries like Egypt, Uganda, Ghana and Tunisia. With the ecosystems passing one more year with technology with confidence, these are becoming the next ‘NEW’ stop for investors to pull out cheques.
During our multiple conversations with the stakeholders of the ecosystem last year, it turns out that Africa is fertile for any kind business to prosper. The demand for traditional business is as high as technology-driven enterprises, but when both are combined, what we get is an exceptional business. The sectors that grossed maximum amounts from investors this year have had some extraordinary growth to show.
Fintech appears to be the ever-growing sector in Africa, with most of the companies trying to work around payments and remittances.
Startups: The Wave of Change for Africa
The African economy, along with the startup ecosystem and other industries, are currently riding some turbulent waves, yet settled on exciting grounds. The narrative will only get more interesting from here onwards. Startups and technology ventures are pushing the outer limits of growth for the continent continually and 2019 will be one more year in this direction.
