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A Lagos, Nigeria-founded mobility fintech has secured a historic investment. TechCrunch reports that Moove has announced a $100 million Series B funding round led by Uber — marking the rideshare company’s first investment in Africa. Now, Moove’s valuation is $750 million. “ Today’s announcement marks a significant milestone for us,” Moove Founder Ladi Delano shared in a press release. “When we founded Moove in 2020, we were motivated to solve the acute shortage of vehicle financing that over two million African mobility entrepreneurs faced.” He continued, “This validation from Uber and others stands as a testament to the fact that what was once a dream is now a palpable reality. This infusion of capital is set to amplify the immensely positive impact our products have in the lives of our customers on a much broader spectrum. I would like to extend my heartfelt gratitude to our dedicated team of Moovers for their relentless effort and commitment, which has been pivotal in reaching...
The phrase “NEPA took the light” is something that you hear quite often in Nigeria. The acronym stands for the National Electric Power Authority, the former name for the company that keeps the power running in the country. Now, named the Power Holding Company of Nigeria, electricity cutting off sporadically continues to be an ongoing issue. In 2014, Beacon Power Services (BPS) founder and chief executive officer Bimbola Adisa launched his company to help improve electricity access in not only Nigeria but across Africa, TechCrunch reports. A report says that in 2020, 77 percent of Sub-Saharan African countries had no access to electricity, having to turn to alternatives like generators. After eight years invested in providing energy management software and analytics for utilities, BPS has recently raised $2.7 million, according to the outlet. “Africa is home to the fastest growing cities in the world, but when most people think of energy access in Africa, they think of the rural...
There is an entire Chinese industry profiting off of racist videos about Africans. Yes, you read that correctly. Sadly, in the year that is 2022, racism is still a global epidemic and a recent report from Rest of World is proof of it. For example, the Chinese video app, Kuaishou, drew in tens of thousands of viewers, who watched as a young Chinese man hosted a beauty pageant where he scrutinized Zambian women. And ladies and gentlemen, this is one of the main sources of primetime entertainment in China. In this specific video, viewers watch the young man dish out lines to the women to repeat back to him, and comments like “All good – except too Black,” flood the video via the app. One contestant also begins to sing after being instructed to do so. Another person commented, “Number five has straight legs,” about another woman participating in the pageant. The host of the show is 28-year-old Cheng Wei, who has roughly 10 million followers across various Chinese social media platforms...
Many parents immigrate to America in order for their children to have the opportunity to pursue higher education. Unfortunately, not everyone has the access to do so. To help more Africans achieve this dream, co-founder and CEO Ope Bukola and her team launched Kibo School. According to TechCrunch, the online school has raised $2 million to offer STEM degrees targeted to students in Africa.
From billionaire to billionaire, Patrice Motsepe has formed an opinion on Elon Musk. As South Africa’s first Black billionaire, Motsepe said that entrepreneurs can learn a thing or two from the Tesla CEO, which could most likely increase their net worth and the success of their business. According to Motsepe, Musk’s strong belief in himself is a good thing. “I’m not saying [entrepreneurs] must be cocky and arrogant . . . but I think [Musk] believed so much in what he was doing . . . he succeeded,” said Motsepe.
Individuals interested in investing in exclusive markets in the continent of Africa now have the chance. daba , an abbreviation for “Democratizing Access to Business in Africa” and pays homage to a shovel-like tool used for agriculture in Ivory Coast, was co-founded by American-based entrepreneurs – Boum III Jr and Anthony Miclet. Established as Africa’s first social investment application, daba’s mission is to make investing in Africa possible for investors of any level. Based on a press release, Boum and Anthony realized that much of the world’s fastest-growing economies but has a significant lack of investment avenues for retail investors creating a solid foundation for increased interest in Africa as an investment destination . “Now is truly an opportune time to invest in Africa,” said Anthony, who serves as the Head of Product and co-founder of daba alongside Boum. “With recent cultural and economic trends, a lot of eyes are on the continent. It’s safe to say the world is...
People don’t refer to her as Mother Africa for nothing. The home of some of the world’s greatest natural resources is getting an economic boost with 24 African startups chosen to receive funding for startups. As released by Tech Crunch, Y Combinator released its most recent batch of awardees – W22 – that will receive seed funding for new businesses. Of the 414 startups representing over 80 sectors that are a part of this batch, the continent of Africa has received notable funding with Nigeria ranking third, having delivered 18 startups. Per the company’s norm, the United States has the most representation and India ranks second with 32 startups a part of this most recent batch. Although the United States has the largest amount of representation from a single country each year, about 50 percent of Y Combinator’s awardees come from countries outside of the country. Based on previous award batches, this is the first time an African nation has appeared this high on the list. With 24...
Business is always booming for Aliko Dangote — the richest man in Africa. However, his latest project may become his biggest venture yet. According to Business Insider, the Nigerian tycoon recently opened the continent’s largest fertilizer plant on the outskirts of Lagos on March 22. The Dangote Fertiliser Plant comes during the time of the ongoing conflict between Ukraine and Russia — in which the latter country plays a crucial role as a key player in fertilizer supply. According to Trade Data Monitor and Bloomberg’s Green Markets, Russia “accounted for almost one-fifth of 2021 fertilizer exports.” With the current sanctions against Russia causing fertilizer costs to increase, customers are now “begging” for the Dangote Fertiliser Plant to sell crop nutrients, according to Dangote. “We are lucky to have this plant,” Dangote told CNN. “It is coming at the right time with the Ukraine-Russia conflict as both Ukraine and Russia control substantial amounts of agricultural inputs.” The...
Of the 18 richest people in Africa, only five of them are Black. That’s right: on the continent of Africa, 72 percent of the richest people are either white or of other non-Black descent. That’s according to the latest list compiled by Forbes, which revealed that more African billionaires are Afrikaners (descendants from the Dutch, French, and German colonialists in South Africa) than any other African subgroup. And this shouldn’t be surprising, considering how the after-effects of colonial times are still being felt today. In 2015, data released by New World Wealth (via BusinessTech of South Africa) revealed that there was an inequitable transfer of wealth to so-called “marginalized groups,” which includes groups of Black Africans that didn’t even have rights in the country prior to 1994 on account of apartheid. While these statistics about the richest people in Africa are distressing, it’s still better than the statistics regarding the number of Black billionaires in America. As...
Daniel Moses’s story of going from an Uber driver to a millionaire is nothing short of inspirational. The Nigeria native told his story to the British newspaper, The Guardian. He explained that he’d lost more than 150,000 GBP (more than $200,000 USD) in his transportation business, so he had to re-adjust and rethink his strategy. “My search for a better life started in 2004 when I first visited the UK for the first time. In 2015 I lost well over £150,000 in my Nigerian transportation business which caused me to go through anxiety and depression,” he told the outlet. To make ends meet, he first became a delivery driver, then moved on to become an Uber driver. He drove for Uber until he happened to find some information about property investments. He began implementing the strategies he’d learned, and within five years, he’d become a millionaire. “Sixteen months after, I got into property investing, and through the use of various property investment strategies, I have successfully...
A recent report from The Mirror claims to know who the “world’s youngest billionaire” is. According to the outlet, the title belongs to a “baby influencer” by the name of Mompha Jr. The adorable 9-year-old is seen on his Instagram flying around in private jets, posing in front of luxury cars, and living in lavish houses — in other words, living life like your average Instagram influencer, and looking adorable as he does so. What’s more, the outlet reveals that the credit for this “world’s youngest billionaire” goes to the influencer’s father, Mompha Sr. (whose real name is Ismailia Mustapha). The outlet claims that the elder Mustapha bought the boy his first mansion for his sixth birthday back in 2019. And on the “baby influencer’s” posts, his father is often shouted out in thanks for his extravagant lifestyle. “My first ride BBB…thanks Daddy,” he wrote on one photo, which featured the “world’s youngest billionaire” in front of a luxury car. Mompha Jr. also wears luxurious clothes...
Patrice Motsepe has just added more to his $3.1 billion net worth. According to Business Insider, South Africa’s richest Black man — and one of the world’s Black billionaires — has just purchased a wine farm. The outlet reports that the luxury wine farm is called Hidden Valley, and it’s located in Stellenbosch and Somerset, South Africa. “The sale, which was recently announced, includes the purchase of a 28-hectare farm listed for sale at R160 million but was acquired for between R100 million ($5.5 million) and R120 million ($7.9 million) in cash,” confirms Business Insider. “The mining tycoon reportedly paid more for the property than former owner Riaan Stassen did in 2015 when the property was first purchased.” While it’s unclear why Patrice Motsepe decided to purchase this vineyard, what’s clear is that experts believe it will encourage tourism in the area. “This will be good in terms of advertising the brand and making it more attractive to other markets,” Wines of South Africa...
The African startup economy is growing faster than the global economy. Last year, various African startups celebrated wins displayed in dollar signs. There was a slew of high-performing investment rounds which included uLesson ($15M), Metro Africa Xpress Inc. ($31M), and MFS Africa ($100M). We could certainly go on but those numbers are proof that African startups are growing at a rate we have not seen before. According to a LinkedIn posting by Founders Factory Africa’s Accelerator Lead Nicole Dunn, it was said that African startups raised $1 million every two hours in 2021 with a total of $4.9 billion invested in African startups. Now more than ever, investments are soaring in Africa. Here is why.