Top 12 logistics and mobility startup raises of H1 2025
In the first half of 2025, Africa’s broader tech ecosystem saw deal flows—including fundraises, acquisitions, and exits—hit $1.4 billion, per Africa: The Big Deal. This marks a 78% surge over H1 2024. Of these deals, logistics and mobility startups secured $115 million. Africa’s logistics and mobility startups have ridden a dramatic funding rollercoaster in recent years. After investment in the sector plunged from a $346 million peak in H1 2022 to just $82 million in H1 2023. It rebounded to $217 million during the same period in 2024, thanks in large part to Moove’s $110 million raise. This year’s H1 funding is less than the previous year’s, but it marks the sector’s third most active deal period since 2019, underscoring continued confidence in Africa’s mobility and logistics sector. Below, we highlight the top 12 equity rounds from H1 2025, each startup raising at least $5 million. Gozem – $30 million Gozem is a Francophone African “super app” that offers ride-hailing, delivery, vehicle financing, and digital banking services across Togo, Benin, Gabon, and Cameroon. The company successfully raised $30 million in a Series B round, split equally between $15 million in equity and $15 million in debt. This investment was led by SAS Shipping Agencies Services (MSC Group) and Al Mada Ventures. The funds will be used to finance vehicle acquisition, particularly for drivers, facilitate expansion into new markets, and bolster Gozem Money, its growing fintech offering. Sylndr – $15.7 million Sylndr, a Cairo-based startup, secured $15.7 million in a Series A funding round to further digitise and expand its used car marketplace in Egypt. The funding, co-led by DPI’s Nclude Fund and Partech, will be used to enhance Sylndr’s platform, which offers buying, selling, financing, and servicing of used vehicles. This brings the company’s total funding to over $30 million since its launch in 2021. Peach Cars – $11 million Peach Cars is a Kenya-based digital marketplace for used cars, founded by entrepreneurs with Japanese and Kenyan backgrounds. The company secured $11 million in Series A funding, with Suzuki Global Ventures leading the round. Other participants included Japan Bank for International Cooperation, Gogin Capital, and UTEC. The capital will be deployed for expansion across Kenya and into other East and Sub-Saharan African markets, establishing regional inspection hubs, and enhancing the technology used for vehicle verification. Peach Cars offers inspection systems, real-time appraisals, and embedded auto-financing to build trust and transparency in Africa’s used car market, which is often affected by fraud and unreliable reporting. It has raised a total of $16 million in funding across two rounds, according to Tracxn. MyNextCar – $10 million MyNextCar is a South African fleet leasing provider and a crucial vehicle supplier for Bolt’s ride-hailing service. The company successfully closed its first institutional funding round, raising $10 million. This round was led by Emso Asset Management, with additional participation from Bolt, Assemble Capital, and E2 Investments. The funds are earmarked to add 1,500 vehicles to their fleet, expand the Bolt Lite low-cost ride-hailing category, and enhance both driver supply and earning opportunities. Kofa – $8.1 million Kofa is a Ghana-based clean energy technology company specialising in AI-powered battery swapping for electric motorcycles, homes, and microbusinesses. The company raised $8.1 million in a pre-Series A funding round. This total comprised $3.25 million in equity, $590,000 in grants, and $4.32 million in debt. The round was led by E3 Capital and Injaro Investment Advisors, with participation from Shell Foundation and several UK and European investors. The capital will facilitate expansion into additional cities in Ghana and Kenya. Taager – $6.75 million Taager is a social e-commerce platform that originated in Egypt and is now based in Saudi Arabia. It provides comprehensive infrastructure for online merchants, including storage, shipping, payment processing, and product catalogues. The company raised $6.75 million in a pre-Series B round. This funding was led by Norrsken22 and saw continued participation from existing investors such as 4DX Ventures, Raed Ventures, BECO Capital, Breyer Capital, Endeavour Catalyst, and Beltone VC. The capital will be used to accelerate Taager’s expansion across the MENA region, enhance its AI-driven sales tools, and strengthen operations in its major markets, which currently include Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Iraq. Future Rent – $5.7 million FutureRent, a Cape Town-based car subscription company, secured R100 million ($5.7 million) in its first major funding round from a German family office. The company says the funding will enable it add over 450 vehicles to its fleet and meet rising demand for flexible, all-in-one vehicle access. The company seeks to replace car ownership with subscription services, including insurance and maintenance. Zero Carbon Charge – $5.5 million Zero Carbon Charge is a South African clean mobility infrastructure startup dedicated to building a network of off-grid, solar-powered ultra-fast electric vehicle (EV) charging stations. The company secured a $5.6 million equity investment from the Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA). These funds will be used to finance the rollout of ultra-fast charging stations every 150km along national roads. Each site will be solar-powered with its own battery storage, operating off-grid and supporting net-zero transport goals. This decentralised model offers reliable, climate-friendly infrastructure that is independent of the struggling national grid, with landowners hosting stations receiving a revenue share. This deal highlights the increasing institutional confidence in scalable, green transport infrastructure solutions. Arc Ride – $5 million Arc Ride is a Kenyan e-mobility platform that focuses on battery swapping and e-motorcycle leasing, primarily targeting “boda boda” (motorcycle taxi) riders. The company raised $5 million from the UK’s British International Investment (BII). The funds will be used for the deployment of 5,000 electric motorcycles and the large-scale expansion of their automated battery-swapping network in Nairobi and throughout East Africa. Arc Ride aims to reduce costs and downtime for riders and establish itself as a sector leader in battery-as-a-service for motorcycles. This funding will enable the roll-out of a battery-swapping network. Leta – $5 million Leta is a Nairobi-based SaaS company that optimises freight and delivery logistics by providing AI-powered route
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Cheaper and cleaner: In UNILAG, electric buses are changing how students move
Abigail Adekunle, a geophysics student at the University of Lagos, is standing in line waiting for a bus; one of a score of electric buses shuttling students and faculty from one end of the campus to the other. Since the deployment of the electric buses, the familiar line of students waiting for cabs at the campus gate has quietly disappeared. “It is affordable, and its last bus stop is closer to my faculty,” Adekunle says. “Although I wish they could provide more buses to eliminate the long queues.” Once a bus arrives, Adekunle will pay ₦100 in cash or with a Cowry card and board the bus which will launch out quietly, leaving no trail of smoke. In December, 2024, Chart Eco Global Services, a sustainability organisation, in partnership with Ogata Global Resources, launched ten electric buses on campus to reduce transportation fares by 50% and lower carbon emissions. Both Henry Eke (Chairman, Ogata Global Resources) and Itunuoluwa Okusami (CEO, Chart Eco Global Services) are former students of the university. Six months since the deployment, the buses are changing the ways students’ commute around campus. Before the deployment of the EV buses, cabs were the primary mode of transportation within the campus. Fares were fixed at ₦50 but jumped to ₦200 after then newly elected President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s government removed fuel subsidies. The electric buses have now become the dominant choice. The electric shuttle system launched with ten buses, which has since doubled. Okusanmi, who currently manages the buses’ campus operations, noted that they will acquire an additional ten buses this year to eradicate queues and adequately cater for all commuters. Students say that the electric buses are more comfortable and convenient than the cramped back seats of regular cabs. Law student Olajumoke Akinmusere said she preferred the electric buses because they cost less than the campus cabs. “Although I still take cabs whenever I am in a hurry for classes to avoid the queues.” However, preference for commuters with Cowry cards over those with cash remains a conundrum. “I don’t understand why. There can be a long queue, and you feel excited to board the long-awaited bus, only for them to prioritise people with a Cowry card and leave others in the line regardless of the position they arrive,” Akinmusere said. Launched by University Lagos alumni and a sustainability organisation, the campus electric buses offer more comfort and protect the environment at cheaper rates. Image Source: Azeezat Olatunde Before EVs Before the electric buses, students primarily commuted via cabs managed by the Unique Transport Association. In addition, there were campus shuttles (yellow Danfo buses) that transported students from the Yaba and Bariga areas to campus. Occasionally, these shuttles would also pick up students within campus boundaries en route to their designated station at the Centre for Information and Technology Systems (CITS) bus stop. In May 2023, President Tinubu announced the removal of Nigeria’s long-standing fuel subsidy. This policy shift caused petrol prices to surge from ₦185 per litre in early 2023 to as high as ₦1,025 in 2024, though prices varied slightly across regions. As fuel costs soared, campus cab fares also climbed steadily, rising from ₦50 to ₦70 in mid-2023, then to ₦100 and ₦150 over the following months, before reaching ₦200 by December 2024. These increases strained students’ pockets and altered their commuting habits. “I was initially happy about getting a room at Kofo hostel because it’s big,” said Ameerah Junaid, a 300-level mass communication student. “But when transport fares became expensive, I stopped going back to my hostel during class breaks. If I couldn’t afford to wait in line when there’s a long queue in the evening, I’d just walk or stay around my department until there was no queue.” According to Ganiu Hassan, vice chairman of the cab operators’ union, about 150 registered cars operate on campus. There is always a queue and long wait times during the peak hours of 8:00 a.m. and after lectures, leaving many students to either walk or delay their movement entirely. While there is no official data on the number of commuters they get, he acknowledged a noticeable decline in patronage since the launch of the electric buses in December 2024. How it is operated Oluwaseun Oluwafemi, the field supervisor of the EV shuttle system, explained that they have two types of buses. One can operate for up to three hours on a full charge, while the other lasts approximately five hours. Out of the twenty buses on campus, twelve are deployed daily, each completing an average of 60 trips between 7:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m. The buses transport an average of 6,000 students daily. The morning rush peaks at the campus gate, while evenings are busiest at the campus station, reflecting the flow of students heading to classes and returning to their hostels. UNILAG’s charging station, located in the engineering department, contributed to it being the ideal place to start the EV bus operation. “We initially planned on charging our EV buses there,” he disclosed. However, the institution provided a space in the Academic Publishing Centre for them to establish a charging station and park their EV buses. Giving back Okusanmi, an alumni, frequents the University of Lagos campus, and on one occasion, noticed that cab fares had increased to ₦200. This worried him; indigent students may find it hard to move around for their school tasks, a concern that was validated by the number of students he observed walking to and from lectures halls and department buildings. “Once you identify a problem, instead of going to sleep, you develop innovations. That’s exactly what we did,” Okusanmi said. His two-year-old Lagos-based company, Chart Eco Global Services, audits carbon emissions for organisations of all sizes, providing them with the tools to measure, manage, and reduce their carbon footprint. “When we identify a problem, we partner with technology providers to achieve our aim. In this instance, we collaborated with Ogata Resources to provide the electric buses, while ours is to
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Cross-border payments as the next frontier for harnessing Africa’s potential
Not long ago, physical cash was the only viable payment method across Africa. Today, the continent is transforming how money moves, driven by local innovation, growing digital infrastructure, and a new generation of businesses building solutions that connect markets and create opportunity. Africa isn’t just catching up in digital payments; it’s leading in it. Mobile money, which has expanded financial access to millions globally, is rooted in Africa. In 2024, the continent was home to 1.1 billion out of the world’s 2.1 billion registered mobile money accounts, contributing to over 65% of the total $1.68 trillion transaction value. We’ve also seen rapid growth in Instant Payment Systems (IPS). In 2017, Africa had just two IPS networks. By 2024, this number increased to fourteen, processing more than a trillion dollars in transactions in 2023 alone. These are impressive milestones. But despite this progress, our payment landscape remains fragmented. The very innovation that powers local ecosystems is also creating disconnected systems, especially when it comes to cross-border access. Financial access still tends to cluster in urban centres, leaving rural and peri-urban populations underserved. Rather than expanding access, we risk deepening access for those already included. Making cross-border payments seamless, affordable, and secure is still a work in progress. Much of Africa’s digital payment success stems from strong local or regional systems, but many don’t talk to each other. This lack of interoperability is a major barrier to scaling intra-African trade and enabling broader economic participation. Cross-border payment interoperability is the next frontier. It’s the foundation needed to power the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and other regional harmonisation efforts. When done right, it allows buyers and sellers across borders to transact as easily as if they were in the same market. So, what’s holding us back? Africa’s financial landscape is diverse and complex, with 54 countries, over 40 currencies, and hundreds of payment methods. For global businesses, this often results in friction, such as operational delays, liquidity challenges, and regulatory uncertainty. Even with strong platforms like ours at Flutterwave, where we operate in 35+ countries and engage with a wide range of partners, there are still foundational issues to solve. One of the most critical is identity. Knowing who is sending or receiving money isn’t just a regulatory requirement; it’s essential to building trust and securing transactions. Without widespread access to digital identity systems, we cannot deliver scalable, inclusive financial solutions. Equally important is liquidity, especially in cross-border B2B payments. African businesses often struggle with currency mismatches, dollar shortages, and delayed settlements. Embracing new technologies such as stablecoins and blockchain infrastructure through industry efforts like the Circle Payment Network can unlock faster settlements and greater predictability. This isn’t just about merchants, it’s about everyday people, too. Think of the diaspora sending money home with lower fees and faster delivery. That’s real impact. Credit data is another essential pillar requiring urgent attention, especially for small and medium-sized businesses, who will benefit the most from convenient capital access to grow their business. The absence of comprehensive and accessible credit information often limits their ability to secure loans and expand their operations. Of course, none of this works without the right regulatory environment. The positive news is that many African regulators are leaning into exploring and, in some cases, guiding the development of blockchain and other emerging tools. However, the lack of harmonised regulation across countries remains a hurdle. For businesses, this leads to higher compliance costs and slower expansion. Ultimately, no single player can solve this alone. The future of digital finance in Africa lies in collaboration between fintechs, banks, regulators, telecom operators, and global networks. We need a “network of networks” model where platforms interoperate, not compete for control. This is how we drive practical innovation, scale adoption of tools like stablecoins, and most importantly, serve the real needs of people and businesses across Africa. _________ Omosalewa Adeyemi is the seasoned EVP of Global Expansion & Payment Partnerships at Flutterwave. With over a decade of leadership, she’s spearheaded expansion into 20+ countries, securing 30+ financial partnerships and 50+ payment integrations. Her expertise in financial analysis, risk management, and process optimization drives Flutterwave’s global growth and seamless financial inclusion. Mark your calendars! Moonshot by TechCabal is back in Lagos on October 15–16! Join Africa’s top founders, creatives & tech leaders for 2 days of keynotes, mixers & future-forward ideas. Early bird tickets now 20% off—don’t snooze! moonshot.techcabal.com
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My Life in Tech: Frederick Abila is building Ghana’s AI future from a dorm room in Tarkwa
It’s a rainy evening in Lagos. I am speaking with 21-year-old Ghanaian innovator Frederick Abila, a second-year student of computer science and engineering at the University of Mines and Technology (UMaT) in Ghana’s Western Region. He has just returned to his room after launching a hackathon for over 70 young Ghanaians, challenging them to create software applications that address specific Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The hackathon will end in mid-August. At 21, Abila has created three AI-powered platforms: Buzz Chat, Study Graph, and Legalyse, each tackling a problem he believes to be overlooked or misunderstood. “I’ve sacrificed a lot of my time, my youth and almost everything for this,” he says. “I’ve never had the luxury of having fun and constantly hanging out with peers and living a normal life. I’m always trying to think about how tech can make everyone’s lives better.” From fiction to function Before the products and the code, Abila was a curious 14-year-old in Accra trying to publish short stories. He grew up in the Ghanaian capital, with roots in the Central Region. His first love was storytelling. As a teenager, he wrote fiction and spent hours online trying to figure out how to share his work with the world. “I was constantly on Google and started wondering what was behind the search engine,” he recalls. “I’d search for something and immediately get results. I wanted to know what made that happen.” It was this curiosity that pulled him into the world of technology. Using free online resources, he taught himself how to code. In 2019, whilst still in boarding school, he built an e-commerce platform for local vendors. But it stalled when he tried to integrate payments. “I needed to add a payment system and couldn’t find Ghana on PayPal’s list of supported countries,” he says. “That’s when it dawned on me; almost every tech product we use in Africa is made by someone who isn’t African.” The project eventually shut down because he couldn’t manage it remotely from school. But the experience planted a seed: What if tech in Africa wasn’t built elsewhere? “If PayPal can block us from using their service, what stops Facebook or Instagram from doing the same?” he wondered. That realisation would later inspire his most ambitious project. My Life in Tech: I’m a blind journalist. Tech has changed my life, but there’s room for more inclusivity Buzz Chat: More than social media Buzz Chat began as Abila’s response to the idea that foreign-owned platforms could arbitrarily exclude African users. But when AI tools gained momentum in 2022, he saw an opportunity to build something deeper. “The very first AI I added was Charles, a chatbot that mimics real human conversations,” he explains. “People didn’t even realise it was AI; they thought it was a real person.” Charles was soon followed by Ember, a mental health chatbot designed to offer emotional support rather than amplify the comparison and toxicity that often define social media. “I realised how social media usually causes mental health issues,” he says. “I wanted to turn that around and make it positive.” Buzz Chat now has over 13,000 users, mostly students and young professionals in Ghana, according to Abila. For many, it offers more than a social platform but a digital ecosystem that serves need beyond social connections. “I looked at Facebook and realised how many jobs a social platform could create,” he says. “I want Buzz Chat to do that for Ghana.” Mapping my AI brain Study Graph and Legalyse: Personalised learning, simulated justice Abila’s second project, Study Graph, addresses a challenge he’s experienced firsthand: a rigid education system that doesn’t cater to different learning styles. “Sometimes I struggle in school; not because I’m not smart, but because the teaching style doesn’t work for me,” he says. “Study Graph adapts to how each person learns.” Unlike traditional e-learning platforms, Study Graph analyses a student’s learning history. Users upload transcripts, and the platform tailors study materials to their preferred style: visual summaries, audio lectures, or interactive quizzes. “I’d call it a co-pilot for students,” he says. “It understands every bit of a student’s learning life and offers tools to help them progress.” Then there’s Legalyse, an AI-powered legal training platform. Inspired by conversations with law students frustrated by the lack of practical experience, Legalyse lets users simulate real legal cases without needing a license. “With Legalyse, they pick a case, choose to be the prosecutor or defender, and go through an entire trial simulation with a virtual judge,” Abila explains. The platform, like many AI applications, is built on large language models, trained with jurisdiction-specific data, and designed to make legal education immersive and hands-on. Togolese developer, Martino Yovo, wants to pull down language barriers for francophone techies The hidden cost of innovation Abila’s parents were initially unsure about his path. His mother, who once hoped he’d become a doctor, struggled to understand why her son was always in front of a laptop. “She never said she hated what I was doing, but I could tell she wasn’t happy,” he says. “They didn’t understand why I’d sit in front of my laptop for hours.” Even at university, most of his lecturers don’t know the full scope of his work. “They know the name, but they don’t know the person behind it,” he says quietly. It has taken an emotional toll. But what keeps him going, he says, is the shared sense of purpose he finds in solving real-world problems. “I feel most alive when I discover a problem others also face and decide to solve it.” Despite the traction his solutions have gained, Abila has faced rejections in his bid to scale his ideas and products. He’s applied four times to the Y Combinator accelerator program without securing a spot. “I see people doing lesser things in the US and getting into YC,” he says, frustration creeping into his voice. The bias isn’t just institutional, he says. “At one point, people assumed Buzz Chat
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BasiGo launches Kenya’s first electric Matatu pilot on intercity routes
Kenyan electric mobility startup BasiGo has launched the country’s first pilot programme for electric matatus (public transport minivans) on inter-city routes, a small but symbolic step in the country’s push to decarbonise public transport. Two transport Savings and Credit Cooperative Organisations (Saccos)—4NTE and Manchester Travellers Coach—will partake in the trial. One van each will ply the Nyahururu–Nyeri, Nyahururu–Nakuru, and Thika–Nairobi routes, all popular corridors about 100-250km outside the capital. The initiative extends BasiGo’s electric mobility vision from Nairobi’s congested urban centres to longer-distance transport corridors used daily by thousands of commuters. Each of the new vans has a range of 300 kilometres on a single charge and takes 90 minutes to recharge. BasiGo has installed charging stations in Thika and Nyahururu to support the trial. The vehicles will be offered under the company’s “Pay-As-You-Drive” model, a lease-to-own scheme aimed at matatu operators who can’t afford the steep upfront cost of new vehicles. “We are delighted to extend electric mobility beyond Nairobi, and electrify an iconic part of Kenya’s history — the matatu,” said Moses Nderitu, BasiGo Managing Director. “By partnering with SACCOs like 4NTE and Manchester, we’re showing that electric mobility is not only possible, but practical for intercity and inter-county transit.” Wilfred Kimotho, chairman of 4NTE Sacco, which runs vehicles between Nyahururu, Nakuru, and Nyeri, called the partnership a “step into the future,” adding that the sector can’t afford to be left behind as the rest of the world transitions to cleaner energy. The electric matatu, though, has plenty to prove. Kenya’s matatu network is informal, heavily diesel-dependent, and notoriously hard to regulate. Operators are often sceptical of change, and many lack the capital or trust in new technology to make the switch. Charging infrastructure also remains thin outside of major cities, and questions remain about how EVs will hold up on rougher rural roads and during peak demand. If the pilot succeeds, BasiGo says it will scale up quickly. The company, which launched in 2021, is targeting more than 1,000 electric vans across Kenya in the next few years. Like its electric buses, the vans will eventually be assembled locally. In 2024, it raised $41.5 million to expand its assembly line in Nairobi. Mark your calendars! Moonshot by TechCabal is back in Lagos on October 15–16! Join Africa’s top founders, creatives & tech leaders for 2 days of keynotes, mixers & future-forward ideas. Early bird tickets now 20% off—don’t snooze! moonshot.techcabal.com
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Weeks after Copia’s collapse, co-founder, top executives quietly registered new startup
One month after Kenya’s Copia Global collapsed in May 2024 under the weight of operational debt and failure to raise fresh funding, its top executives quietly returned to the e-commerce scene with a new startup. Tim Steel, Copia’s former chief executive; Michael King, its former chief technology officer; and co-founder and executive chairperson Tracey Turner have launched Stahili, a new e-commerce platform that promises cashback, discounts, and mobile data rewards for user engagement. Corporate filings seen by TechCabal show the company was registered in June 2024, barely a month after Copia was placed under administration. The company is already operational in Kenya, with a live website offering deals on its products. The launch comes at a sensitive time for Copia’s creditors, employees, and investors, many of whom are still struggling with the aftermath of one of Kenya’s most high-profile startup collapses. Filings at the Business Registration Service (BRS) show Stahili is wholly owned by Copia Holding Company, a US-registered entity linked to Turner and previously associated with the now-defunct Copia Global. While Copia shut down its operations in Kenya and Uganda by September 2024, the holding company appears to have survived and is now the corporate parent of the new platform. Turner and Steel did not respond to requests for comment at the time of publication. In January 2025, Turner started Olverra, a US-registered entity that helps African artisans sell handmade products abroad. Her LinkedIn profile shows Turner serves as the executive chair, and Vijay Otieno, a Kenyan data engineer, is the CEO. According to a short description on Turner’s LinkedIn page, Stahili draws inspiration from early Groupon in the US and Coupang in South Korea, promising to empower lower-income African consumers by rewarding them for participating in surveys and offering feedback to brands. Founded in 2012, Copia had built its model on serving rural and peri-urban households using an agent-driven last-mile delivery system. For years, it was heralded as one of Africa’s most promising tech-for-good stories. Backed by DOB Equity, Goodwell Investments, Enza Capital, Lightrock, and the US International Development Finance Corporation (DFC), the startup raised over $123 million (KES15.8 billion) across seven rounds. Its final raise, a $20 million injection in December 2023, came just months before the company’s abrupt collapse. Despite the deep investor pool, Copia never turned a profit in its 12-year existence. Its strategy—typical of venture-backed startups—focused on growth before profitability, betting that rapid market capture would eventually justify the burn. Despite its lofty ambitions, Copia never turned a profit. By early 2024, operational costs had spiralled, margins were under pressure, and the company failed to secure a sustainable lifeline after its final $20 million funding round in December 2023. In May 2024, the company filed for voluntary administration. It was wound down by September, with administrators moving to liquidate its remaining assets to pay creditors. It is still unclear whether Stahili will seek new funding and from which investors. If it is Copia’s spiritual successor, it faces the same challenge that collapsed its predecessor: delivering value to rural consumers at scale, without burning through capital faster than revenues can catch up. Mark your calendars! Moonshot by TechCabal is back in Lagos on October 15–16! Join Africa’s top founders, creatives & tech leaders for 2 days of keynotes, mixers & future-forward ideas. Early bird tickets now 20% off—don’t snooze! moonshot.techcabal.com
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Safaricom adds PayPal withdrawals to M-PESA app to woo Kenya’s remote workers
Safaricom has added PayPal withdrawals to the M-PESA super app, making it easier for Kenyan users, particularly freelancers and remote workers, to access funds earned abroad. The move aims to capture a larger share of Kenya’s fast-growing digital freelance economy, where many rely on PayPal to receive payments from international clients. The new feature, introduced as a mini app within M-PESA, eliminates the need to use a separate web portal to transfer PayPal funds, a process long criticized for delays and clunky user experience. This marks the first time users can withdraw directly from PayPal via the app, bypassing multiple logins and browser redirects. The feature complements Equity Bank’s PayPal withdrawal service, Kenya’s only instant bank-linked option. With M-PESA’s transaction volumes and user engagement at all-time highs, Safaricom is doubling down on embedding financial tools that deepen user stickiness and expand revenue from its mobile money platform. The update comes as M-PESA’s role in Safaricom’s business expands. Mobile money revenue for the company rose 15.2% year-on-year to KES 161.1 billion ($1.25 billion) in the year ended March 2025, according to Safaricom’s financial statements. That growth was driven by a 20.3% rise in chargeable transactions per active user, now at 37.92 monthly, and a 10.5% increase in one-month active customers, which reached 35.82 million. Average revenue per M-PESA user grew 9.4% to KES 395.22 ($3.06), while the number of agents in the network rose 14.1% to nearly 299,000, helping Safaricom sustain broad physical access to cash-in and cash-out services. The M-PESA app has been downloaded 13.7 million times and now supports 4.7 million customers. In 2024, Safaricom processed KES 2.3 trillion ($17.83 billion) through the app. M-PESA wallets support balances of up to KES 500,000 ($3,875), with a single transaction cap of KSh 250,000 ($1,938) and a daily transaction limit set at KES 500,000. While Equity Bank remains the go-to option for larger PayPal withdrawals—supporting up to $10,000 per transaction—the app-based route offers a faster, bank-free alternative for users moving smaller sums or seeking more direct control. Kenyan users have also turned to alternatives like Wise and Payoneer to receive international payments, citing better FX rates and fewer restrictions. Still, PayPal remains a dominant channel, and integrating it into the M-PESA app could help Safaricom lock in more transaction volume and deepen user engagement at a time when the mobile money market is shifting. Mark your calendars! Moonshot by TechCabal is back in Lagos on October 15–16! Join Africa’s top founders, creatives & tech leaders for 2 days of keynotes, mixers & future-forward ideas. Early bird tickets now 20% off—don’t snooze! moonshot.techcabal.com
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👨🏿🚀TechCabal Daily – A collective collapse
In partnership with Lire en Français اقرأ هذا باللغة العربية Happy mid-week. In yesterday’s newsletter, we referenced a news article detailing an ongoing legal case between M-KOPA and a former employee, which contained some inaccuracies. The second blurb of today’s newsletter has been updated to include M-KOPA’s comments regarding the case and what we’ve learned in our investigation. With that clarification in place, yesterday, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) held interest rates steady at 27.5% for the third time in a row. The apex bank also announced on the sidelines that 8 unnamed Nigerian commercial banks—out of 26—have completed the recapitalisation exercise begun in March 2024. PS: Have you tried Sesame’s AI Voice Companion? The AI Voice assistant claims it is good at two things: being a good listener and offering you extra perspective. You should check it out, it really feels like talking to a real person. Let’s get into it! How 54 Collective, Africa’s busiest investor, shut down M-KOPA faces legal heat over employee equity share model Itana launches an AI & Data Growth Special Zone Leapmotor to launch in South Africa this September World Wide Web 3 Opportunities Venture Capital The Collapse of 54 Collective: A rare and costly venture shutdown Bongani Sithole, former CEO of 54 Collective/Image Source: 54 Collective Venture Capital firms rarely shut down in Africa, especially not firms as prominent as 54 Collective. Before the venture studio shuttered in February 2025, only Naspers Foundry, once South Africa’s largest VC fund, had closed after its parent company pulled funding. When news broke that 54 Collective was winding down, the industry was stunned—and full of questions. In recent days, court documents have begun to provide answers. At the centre of the collapse is a $700,000 rebranding exercise that Mastercard Foundation, the studio’s biggest backer, says it never approved. The Foundation’s grant agreement, which began in 2023, committed $106.5 million over five years to fund 54 Collective under strict rules that all spending be for non-profit purposes. The rebrand, which blurred the lines between Africa Founders Ventures (AFV) and its affiliated for-profit entities, Founders Factory Africa and Utopia Capital, triggered alarms at Mastercard Foundation. Not only was the expenditure deemed non-compliant, but it raised concerns that the grant funding was potentially bolstering commercial brands. Bongani Sithole, 54 Collective’s former CEO, told TechCabal that the rebrand was approved by the Foundation and denied any wrongdoing. But court filings contradict that account. According to the filings, the rebranding set off a chain of scrutiny that ultimately led to a forensic audit by Deloitte. The audit uncovered a disturbing picture: no audited financials for 2023 or 2024, over 2,000 backdated journal entries that skewed the firm’s income reporting, and a $4.59 million transfer from AFV’s Standard Bank account to one controlled by Founders Factory Africa. Following these findings, Mastercard Foundation issued a 90-day termination notice, demanded a return of its funds, and eventually took legal action to freeze AFV’s accounts. By May 2025, the Foundation had filed for the studio’s wind-up in court, officially bringing one of Africa’s most active investors to a halt. The consequences for Africa’s tech ecosystem are far-reaching. Dozens of early-stage startups have lost a key source of funding and mentorship. Employees were laid off without guaranteed severance. And the collapse of 54 Collective—once the continent’s busiest investor—has left a hole in the already fragile venture landscape. Paying 2% or more on every transaction adds up fast. For businesses in e-commerce, logistics, travel, fintech, and more, every naira counts. Fincra helps you save more with 1% NGN fees capped at ₦300. Ideal for high-value or high-volume transactions. Get started for free with just your email address! Startups M-KOPA faces legal heat over employee equity share model Image Source: M-KOPA A former M-KOPA Kenya manager, Elizabeth Njoki, has sued the company, alleging its 2019 equity restructuring sidelined African employees while protecting white expatriates and foreign investors. The suit claims Kenyan staff were assigned to a weaker share class (“Minor Holders”) while a powerful new class (“Growth Shares”)—with better rights and exit terms—was mostly reserved for expatriates. Out of 48 recipients, only seven were African; none were Kenyan in a later round. In a detailed statement to TechCabal, M-KOPA called the claims “baseless” and said Growth Shares were introduced after the original ESOP was exhausted in 2018. Both plans, the company said, were board-approved and designed by external consultants to reward and retain talent. Share allocations, it insists, were based on role and seniority, not race, and were overseen by a board HR committee chaired by an independent Kenyan director. State of play: The case comes at a tense moment: as African startups face funding crunches, tough questions about who benefits during down rounds, recapitalisations, and secondary sales are gaining urgency. The lawsuit is especially sensitive given the profile of investors, including Generation Investment Management (GIM), and British International Investment (BII)—a UK government-owned development finance institution (DFI)—which publicly promote inclusive development. M-KOPA maintains that allocations were based on seniority, not race. The petition claims the investors were shielded from dilution while local employees lost out. The big picture: M-KOPA maintains the restructuring followed standard startup governance. The company is pushing for dismissal, arguing the matter belongs in UK courts. If the case proceeds in Kenya, it could set a precedent for how local courts view the responsibilities of global investors and holding companies operating in the Kenyan market. Paga Engine powers the boldest ideas in Africa “Across various use cases and industries, Paga Engine provides reliable rails for your business needs to run smoothly and grow sustainably.” – Tayo Oviosu. Read the full article. Emerging Tech Itana launches an AI & data growth special zone in Lagos Image Source: Itana Africa Itana, Africa’s first digital special economic zone, has launched the continent’s first full-stack AI growth zone in Lagos, Nigeria. The new zone is designed to support AI-first companies, engineers, and researchers in building and successfully scaling AI solutions on African soil, rather than relying
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Vendy wants to become the go-to payment platform for social commerce in Africa
The rising number of social media users and online shoppers on the continent has fuelled a rise in social commerce. Nigerian startup Vendy joins a growing list of startups looking to become the de facto payment layer for Africa’s social commerce economy, beginning with WhatsApp. In the long run, the startup is looking to embed its payments infrastructure across any chat interface where commerce takes place. Launched in 2022 by Kayode Disu and Peter Ekunkoya, YC-backed Vendy presents as a WhatsApp storefront where sellers can set up a catalog and buyers can browse, shop, and pay. Sellers can easily build eye-catching product catalogs with prices, descriptions, and images. On the buyer side, the UX embraces what most users know from mainstream online stores: you can browse, run keyword searches, add items to a virtual cart, and check out, all through a dedicated interface that overlays inside WhatsApp, not in a separate app or browser window. Vendy integrates directly with major African banks and mobile money providers including Sterling, Kuda, Opay, FCMB, Momo, and First Bank, allowing users to pay seamlessly from linked accounts. The Widget is the moat While Vendy’s initial product is a storefront built for WhatsApp, the startup’s core insight is that with buying and selling now largely happening on social media, the real opportunity lies in controlling the payment layer not the storefront. Vendy is betting that whoever enables seamless payments within these conversations will ultimately own the most valuable piece of the social commerce stack. Its key feature is a payment widget that lives on the buyer’s device, not inside WhatsApp. “The infrastructure for chat-based commerce in Africa is still missing,” said Disu, Vendy’s CEO. “We’re building the UPI for Africa starting on WhatsApp.” The company is betting that its widget—which it claims sets it apart from other social commerce tools—connects merchants to customer payments across bank accounts, wallets, cards, and mobile money. It’s not built into WhatsApp (for security reasons), but it runs seamlessly beside it. When a buyer taps “Pay” on a WhatsApp storefront, the Vendy widget launches instantly, showing available linked payment options. The widget requires no account sign-ups, no app downloads, or redirects to third-party sites. For now, the business model is a mix of a flat 1% transaction fees on payments and tiered SaaS subscriptions for businesses (from free to $200/month). 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Vendy has built its own processor which is regulated by the CBN, PCI DSS certified, NDPR compliant, and—crucially—a Meta-approved WhatsApp Business Solution Provider (BSP). This deep integration allows them to offer services others can’t, including branded storefronts, omnichannel reach (Telegram, Instagram, and AI tools like Lua are integrating Vendy’s payment flow) and a developer ecosystem that lets third-party bots or vertical apps plug into the widget to power payments. Vendy’s goal is to not to be seen, but to be on every social platform where money and value is exchanged. Vendy’s future bet In the long term, Vendy’s bet is clear: when Meta or any social media platform finally expands payments in Africa, they’ll need an on-the-ground partner who already built the infrastructure. Vendy wants to be on that shortlist of partners. Vendy’s playbook is
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M-KOPA lawsuit alleges racial disparity in employee equity, firm says claim is baseless
When M-KOPA Holdings, a UK-headquartered fintech with over five million users across five African markets, restructured its shareholding in 2019, it was viewed internally as a safeguard against dilution — a routine measure in the startup scene. Six years later, that decision is at the centre of a potentially high-stakes court case that could force Kenya’s venture-backed startups to reckon with questions on who benefits from companies’ growth. A lawsuit filed by Elizabeth Njoki, a former manager at M-KOPA Kenya Limited, a subsidiary of M-KOPA Holdings, alleges that the company engineered a shareholding structure that denied Kenyan employees meaningful ownership while protecting white expatriates and global investors, including Generation Investment Management, co-founded by former United States vice president Al Gore. The suit claims that M-KOPA discriminated against African employees in allocating equity. Njoki says in her filings that while African employees were assigned to a weaker share class known as “Minor Holders,” a newly created “Growth Shares” category — offering superior rights and exit protections — was mainly reserved for expatriate staff. Company records cited in court filings show that of 48 recipients of Growth Shares, only seven were of African descent. In a later allocation, none were Kenyan. “The Directors, collectively and individually, knowingly acted to unfairly offer anti-dilution protections to preferred shareholders by prejudicing employees of African descent holding ordinary shares, while offering protections to employees of other races who held ordinary shares by compensating them with growth shares,” Njoki said in court filings. M-KOPA disputes the claims and has asked the court to strike out the petition, arguing that shareholder matters must be heard in the courts of England and Wales because the company is incorporated in the UK. The company also stated that Njoki was employed by a local subsidiary — not M-KOPA Holdings — making the Kenyan labour court the incorrect venue for the suit. “The Petition is misconceived, incompetent and an abuse of the court process, in so far as it purports to invoke the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court over an agreement governed by English law and under the exclusive jurisdiction of the Courts of England and Wales,” M-KOPA’s legal representatives said in its preliminary objection to the case. In a detailed emailed response to TechCabal, M-KOPA rejects the allegations as “baseless, disingenuous and entirely false.” The company stated that the Growth Share structure was introduced after its original Employee Stock Option Program (ESOP) was exhausted in 2018, and that both programmes were designed by third-party consultants and approved by the board to reward and retain talent. “The difference in name reflects the company’s shift from a US to a UK domicile, where Growth Shares are a common alternative to options in private companies,” M-KOPA said. “There are over 100 ESOP recipients and over 250 Growth Share recipients at M-KOPA to date. The majority of both ESOP and Growth Shareholders are of African descent.” M-KOPA stated that allocation decisions were based on seniority and role, not race, and that the process was overseen by the HR board committee, chaired by an independent Kenyan director. The equity system However, Njoki states in court documents that when Treehouse Investments converted its debt into equity in early 2019, existing shareholders — including major investors such as British International Investment (BII) and Generation Investment Management (GIM) — faced dilution. To manage this, the board created Growth Shares, which included anti-dilution protections, guaranteed buybacks, and improved access to information. According to Njoki, while local employees were moved into or kept in “Ordinary Shares” (later renamed “Minor Holders” and stripped of rights), foreign staff were compensated with Growth Shares. Between 2019 and 2022, preferred shares held by investors rose from 3.4 million to 12.6 million, while local staff shareholding dropped from 27% to just 7%, according to court filings. In many startups, equity is offered to early employees as part of their compensation, with the promise of shared upside if the company succeeds. In theory, this creates shared incentives, allowing teams to grow together. M-KOPA maintains that no racial disparity exists in its equity programmes, and that the restructuring was legally sound and part of common startup governance practice. “Race does not and has never featured in our compensation decisions. Such an approach would be irrational and counterproductive,” the company said. “Less than 1% of our employees are expatriates, and the majority of those are African expats — such as Kenyans working in South Africa.” Njoki’s filings claim that the changes created a two-tier system, one in which foreign staff and investors were insulated from dilution, while local employees saw their ownership rights quietly eroded. She claims the process lacked transparency and disproportionately impacted African staff. Njoki claims that when she raised concerns internally, she was warned against seeking legal advice and threatened with being classified as a “bad leaver,” risking her options being revoked. M-KOPA denies this outright. “Certainly not. The opposite is true,” the company said. “We classified Ms. Njoki as a good leaver. The company never threatened to revoke her shares or change her leaver status — and could not have done so once she exercised her options to purchase her shares, which she did immediately upon leaving M-KOPA.” The ethical capital question What makes this suit sensitive is the profile of the investors involved. BII, a UK government-owned development finance institution (DFI), and GIM are not just large funders; they market themselves as ethical capitalists. BII is mandated to support equitable development in emerging markets; GIM said it’s driven by long-term sustainability and justice. Both firms sit on M-KOPA’s board, giving them influence over decisions like capital structure and equity allocation. The petition claims they used that influence to insulate their positions and reinforce control, even as staff of African descent were sidelined. M-KOPA’s top investors are recognised for advocating fair and inclusive economic development in Africa and other emerging markets. Yet the petition alleges these same investors were protected from dilution during the 2019 restructuring, even as local staff lost out. “This legal
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