Africa: 2021, an exceptional year for African start-ups. They mobilized $ 4.3 billion thanks to 818 operations of more than $ 100,000

2021 has been a remarkable year for African start-ups. These have managed to mobilize more than $ 4.3 billion, thanks to 818 operations of more than $ 100,000, underlines the thebigdeal.substack.com platform, in a report published on January 4, 2022. “This equates to an average raising of $ 1 million every two hours, and 2.5 times the amount raised in 2020,” we learn in the document.

One of the novelties of this study is the “extraordinary growth” of “mega-deals”. Which refers to the fundraising operations of more than $ 100 million carried out by technology companies. In 2021, 12 mega transactions were recorded on the continent, for a combined value of $ 1.9 billion. This amount “is greater than the total funds raised in 2020 across the ecosystem, across all deals over $ 1 million,” the platform comments. In 2020, only 2 mega-deals were registered in Africa against 3 in 2019. Once again, it is the “big four” of the continent, namely: South Africa, Nigeria, Egypt and Kenya who have captured 81% of the total funds raised by start-ups, with over $ 1.5 billion for Nigeria.

Unsurprisingly, fintech remains the industry that has received the most funding on the continent. The fintech companies alone have claimed nearly $ 2.3 billion. Overall, it is noted that more than 800 local and foreign investors have participated in at least one fundraising operation on the continent. Of the 54 countries, at least 30 recorded a transaction over $ 100,000 during the year. This dynamic of African start-ups is a strong signal sent to investors. It provides information on the potential of the African entrepreneurial and technological ecosystem.