Startups Profile

Founded in 2015 by an economics graduate of Cavendish University, Zambia, Evelyn Chilomo Kaingu, Lupiya is a marketplace for micro-loans.  The startup is a branchless, digital microfinance platform that leverages technology to make the process of borrowing simpler and easier for people and businesses located across the country. The Zambian micro-finance startup has developed a […]

TradeDepot started as a consulting firm in 2005 before pivoting into a product-led startup in 2016 to aid seamless milk distribution across Nigeria.  Now, the platform is connecting consumer goods brands in Africa directly to a target market of several million retail outlets across the continent and also providing micro-loans to retailers to enable them

Komaza was founded by American scientist Tevis Howard in 2006 and it is the largest forestry company in Kenya with over 22,000 farmer partners and 8,000 ha of forest under management.  It plants over 1,500 ha with 5,000 farmers annually accounting for approximately 40% of commercial tree plantings in Kenya. Its innovative technology transforms underutilized

Energy+ is the exclusive importer, distributor, and reseller of d.light off-grid solar (OGS) products in Mali. Having made its first product sales in March 2019, it has since sold thousands of OGS products on a cash and pay-as-you-go (PAYG) basis throughout Mali.  Since its founding in 2017 Energy+ has focused on providing affordable and reliable

Formed in 2011, and based in Cape Town, South Africa, Sea Monster creates engaging, memorable digital content and experiences using animation and games that drive business and social outcomes.  The startup’s creative digital products have solved communication, change management, staff engagement, and learning challenges for some of the largest corporates in South Africa and around

Founded by couple Syrine Chaalala and Mohamed Gastli, nextProtein harvests Black Soldier Fly larvae, which are processed into valuable components for aquaculture, livestock, and pet feedstocks, as well as agricultural fertilizer. NextProtein has specialized in the breeding of insect larvae which it transforms into components dedicated to animal feed, as well as organic and natural

Launched in 2019, VALR is a digital asset platform that allows customers to buy, sell, store and transfer Bitcoin and 60 other cryptocurrencies – the widest selection of any platform in Africa – seamlessly and securely.  It has so far processed over US$7.5 billion in trading volume and serves over 250,000 retail customers and 500

Founded in 2012 by Gys Kappers and Gerhard Pretorius, the Stellenbosch-based Wyzetalk is a digital employee engagement platform that has successfully deployed with corporates such as Shoprite, Woolworths, Pick n Pay, RCL Foods, Harmony Gold, and Impala Platinum. Their journey began by signing up local, proudly South African companies and clients like Woolworths, Pick n

DPO is the largest and fastest-growing African payment gateway. They offer small and medium-sized businesses, right up to global companies, the solution, the technology, the opportunity, and the support to make and receive online payments wherever and whenever they want. Developed in-house, their solutions enable customers to make and receive business payments quickly and securely

Founded in 2018 by Moses Onitilo and Olusegun George, Jamborow brings together all players in the financial ecosystem, including lenders, borrowers, and intermediaries. Its system digitizes KYC data, automated and digitized operations, creates a credit score for all members, avails e-wallets to members, provides additional sources of funding for on-lending, has a business intelligence tool,