Key Trends and Metrics with Regards to the African Startup Ecosystem

2020 was a record year for investment into the African tech startup ecosystem, with more startups raising more money, from more investors, than ever before. This is according to the sixth edition of the annual African Tech Startups Funding Report 2020 released by startup news and research portal Disrupt Africa, which is for the first time available free to all as part of an open-sourcing initiative in partnership with Catalyst Fund, RTB House, Quona Capital, 4Di Capital, Villgro Africa, Lateral Capital, and Otundi Ventures. The report finds that new funding records were set over the course of 2020, as 397 startups raised an impressive US$701.5 million in total funding. Both these figures are up substantially on the previous year, with the number of funded startups increasing 27.7 per cent on 2019, and the funding total growing by 42.7 per cent. Though growth has slowed a little, the numbers represent impressive growth on 2019 in spite of the COVID-19 pandemic, and mean the African tech startup ecosystem continues on its positive trajectory from a funding perspective. This year’s edition of the report also counts at least 370 active investors, marking 42.8 per cent growth on the previous year, when the data tracked 261 investors. This figure was in itself a 68.4 per cent rise on the 155 investors we found in 2018. Kenya, Nigeria, South Africa and Egypt remain emphatically Africa’s “big four” from a funding perspective, accounting for 77 per cent of funded startups and 89.2 per cent of total investment. Nigeria (85), Egypt (82) and South Africa (81) lead the way from a ventures perspective, but when it comes to total combined raised capital it is Kenya that is Africa’s leader, with startups from the East African country raising over US$190 million in funding in 2020.

SOURCE: DISRUPT AFRICA