Hey, welcome to this week’s newsletter!
Hoping the long weekend is treating you well and the new month has started well.
We had a quiet week in the startup scene but there were some newsworthy stories you may want to know about.
News of the week
The main story this week was about the Kenyan B2B e-commerce platform, Wasoko, which had its valuation drop from over $625 Million to $260 million. Wasoko enables informal retailers to order products at any time via SMS or mobile app, and receive free same-day delivery to their store.
Back in December 2023, MaxAB and Wasoko announced a preliminary merger to join together as a combined entity to drive the transformation of Africa’s informal retail sector. At the time, the company’s valuation was $625 Million but it has now been slashed to $260 million. This is according to VNV Global, a Swedish investment firm and an investor in Wasoko. The investment firm has reduced the value of its stake in the startup by 48%.
Wasoko has has a bumpy ride since then and recently exited Zanzibar and paused operations in Uganda and Zambia. This might be tied to the market uncertainties and reduced funding.
Wasoko is still one of the most funded B2B e-commerce startup in Africa. It is unclear what the future holds for this startup given the recent developments.
Do you think the latest developments will have any impact on Wasoko and its operations?
Startup Funding Rounds
We had a total of 7 funding rounds with the EdTech/E-learning sector seeing 2 rounds. The investments were in only 3 countries (Egypt, Kenya, South Africa) each seeing 2 rounds except for Egypt that had 3 funding rounds.
ValU, an Egyptian FinTech that provides buy-now, pay-later (BNPL) services completed a $19 Million debt financing round led by Bank ABC and Al Ahli Bank of Kuwait.
Koa Academy secured a $50,000 grant after winning the MEST Africa Challenge 2023. Koa Academy offers dynamic and interactive courses for grades 4-12 with a focus on engagement and accessibility.
BasiGo secured a $3 Million in equity investment from CFAO Kenya and Mobility 54 to help scale production of electric buses.
Egyptian EdTech platform, Sprints, raised $3 million from Disruptech Ventures, EdVentures and CFYE.
Kenya’s BURN Manufacturing secured $12 Million Carbon financing to expand the distribution of clean cookstoves in Africa. The round was led by Key Carbon and Cartesian. BURN is a manufacturer and distributor of clean cookstoves.
Right Now Response, a South African truck fleet management platform raised $634,000 from HAVAÍC.
Egypt’s InCurA raised an undisclosed amount in a pre-seed round with a number of regional investors including Tiye Angels, Egypt's first Women's Angel Investor Network.
Active Investors
This week saw a total of 10 active investors participate in the 7 funding rounds. No investor took part in more than 1 funding round. The investors are:
Bank ABC, Al Ahli Bank of Kuwait, CFAO, Mobility54, Disruptech Ventures, EdVentures, CFYE, HAVAÍC, Key Carbon, Cartesian, UI Investments, Tiye Angels, Pharos Holding, KAUST Innovation Fund and AUC Angels.
Opportunities and jobs
Applications are now open for the Norrsken Accelerator 2024. Applications are open for early-stage startup founders in Africa and across the globe. You can learn more and apply here.
The eLearning Africa conference set to take place in Kigali in May. Learn more and register here.
Bayer Foundation Women Empowerment Award is now accepting applications from female entrepreneurs driving change in Africa, Asia Pacific, Latin America, and the Middle East.
Applications are open for the AgriTech4Egypt Innovation Challenge. You can apply here till April 21.
Other Stories
Satgana, a Climate tech VC Firm, closed its First Fund that Supports Early-stage startups in Africa closed its first fund that supports startups.
Kua Ventures has partnered with Startup Savanna to support 10 entrepreneurs to pitch for a maximum of KES 15 million in funding for their businesses.
ANAVA pledges $4.3 million investment in Africa’s Janngo Capital Startup Fund.
Heirs Holdings has launched a Subsidiary to empower Africa’s digital transformation.
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