Top news of the week: 20.02.2023.
Nigeria’s Curacel raises funding to power insurance offerings and expand into North Africa
Investors in Curacel's $3 million seed round include Tencent, YC and AAF Management and Elefund (investors in New York-based insurtech Sure).
Co-Creation Hub’s edtech accelerator puts $15M towards African startups
CcHUB's new accelerator program, EdTech Fellowship Program, will back and support 72 startups across Nigeria and Kenya over three years.
Costanoa Ventures and Norrsken22 back Smile Identity in $20M Series B round
Smile Identity provides ID verification and KYC compliance for African faces and identities; raises $20 million for its expansion plans.
Kenya’s fintech Power set to scale after $3M seed round
Power has so far on-boarded 75 companies in Kenya, giving it access to over 40,000 workers, out of which it has served 15%.
Jumba, a Kenyan startup simplifying sourcing of construction supplies, raises $4.5M
Jumba simplifies the sourcing of construction materials through a common marketplace for retailers and developers.
Launch Africa Ventures has been Africa’s most active venture capital investor since 2021
More investors continue to show interest in African startups, but Launch Africa Ventures has remained the most active investor for two years in a row.
Chipper Cash executes second round of layoffs less than three months after axing 12.5% of staff
African fintech Chipper Cash conducted a second round of layoffs last Friday just ten weeks after it cut approximately 12.5% of its staff.
Fintech dominant for African startup funding but overall share fell in 2022
Fintech remains African tech’s most powerful force when it comes to funding, but growth is everywhere, and the sector’s share of total investment actually fell in 2022.