Tage Kene-Okafor

Binance will discontinue its naira (NGN) services in response to heightened regulatory scrutiny in Nigeria, it said in a blog post today. The cryptocurrency exchange will begin delisting any existing NGN spot trading pairs by Thursday, March 7. It advised users to withdraw, trade or convert their NGN assets into crypto before the service discontinuation. […]

MDaaS Global, a Nigerian health tech company that operates a network of tech-enabled diagnostic centers across the country, has secured $3 million in pre-Series A funding. The round was led by Aruwa Capital and Newton Partners, the latter of which was the lead investor in the health tech’s $2.3 million seed extension in 2021. MDaaS […]

Nigeria is actively seeking information from Binance regarding its top 100 users in the country and all transaction history spanning the past six months, according to a Financial Times report. This news overlaps with the revelation of the names of the two executives from the cryptocurrency exchange who were detained two weeks ago: Tigran Gambaryan, […]

Youverify, a Nigerian provider of identity verification and anti-money laundering (AML) solutions for banks and startups, secured a $2.5 million investment from Elm, which specializes in offering ready-made and customized digital solutions to public and private institutions in Saudi Arabia. The pre-Series A investment from Elm also includes a strategic partnership to help Youverify streamline […]

Save for fintech and cleantech, B2B e-commerce and retail was the leading destination for venture capital dollars over the last five years. The premise of digitizing the continent’s mom-and-pop convenience stores and offering various solutions to streamline logistics and procurement processes saw hundreds of millions of dollars flood the segment, particularly during the venture capital […]

African financial institutions typically scale their solutions using a mix of local and foreign tech. Appzone is one of the standout local fintech software providers for banks and fintechs, providing better pricing and flexibility. For over a decade, the Nigeria-based Appzone has functioned as an enabler (at payment rails and core infrastructure) within banking and […]

Moove, an African mobility fintech that offers vehicle financing to ride-hailing and delivery app drivers, has raised $100 million in a funding round as it plots expansion into new markets. Moove did not say who is leading the round, but sources close to the deal confirmed to TechCrunch that Uber led the Series B round, […]

VNV Global, a Swedish investment firm that backs startups in mobility, health and marketplaces, slashed the value of its holding in Wasoko, an African B2B e-commerce startup, by 48%, according to its annual report for 2023. In its annual report, VNV set Wasoko’s fair value at around $260 million as of December 2023, the month that […]

The African tech ecosystem, buffeted by huge potential but also lots of economic, political and social instabilities, is no stranger to major drama befalling even its most promising-looking startups. But recently, LemFi, the Nigeria-based fintech that provides money transfer services to African migrants, is shaping up as an example of a bounce-back—and growth story. After […]

Venture capital activity in Africa has shown resilience over the past six months, with major firms backing startups on the continent closing their funds despite the ongoing funding winter. In the latest development, TLcom Capital, an African VC firm with offices in Lagos and Nairobi and a focus on early-stage startups, has concluded fundraising for […]