Why Investors Are Piling into African Startups
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- Опубликовано: 28 май 2024
- Africa’s tech startups raised a record $5 billion in 2021 as investors piled into firms trying to fix the continent's thorniest problems. But money isn't flowing evenly.
#Africa #Tech #BloombergQuicktake
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Mpesa helps me pay my school fees from DRC. Thanks Mpesa!
Interesting. It has a far reach
Benefits of DRC joiningg the EAC
Am from Nigeria and currently in Goma DRC, and I have been thinking about using mpesa for my crypto purchases and in turn send money home....
All the best to Africa! Start-ups are pivotal for helping people grow out of poverty.
Corruption is the real problem.
it not Africa its kenya
@@mungai8482 only 4 unicorns lol 😆 USA alone has 1096 unicorns lol
Africa is not poor by the way. Your media and elementary school is deceiving you. The problem is corrupt leadership. It's even far more better to see africa as one of those asian third world countries than allowing poverty to be the first to come to your mind each time you think about Africa
Why compare the US to Africa?
That's both hilarious and pathetic.
Bloomberg have been bringing us Africa related stories. Nice 👍🏿 thanks.
*Am proud to be a Kenyan, keep on shining Africa*
Kudos to Bloomberg for covering Africa fairly. You do not see that with a lot of Western media outlets.
Stop thanking the devil.
@@mlioneastop believing in fairy tales as an adult. There's no devil.
@@mlionea He actually said the truth even though each media have their own objectives. Even your own local media is very well manipulated
@@dantatadangote4700 don't think that was meant for you.
@@mlionea You really hate white people don't you? Every video I see you comment in you are either bashing the West or white people. Which makes me wonder why you are using their technology in the first place.
So amazed to see a strong effort of tech growth in Kenya! Especially glad that Bloomberg is shining a light on this.
@@mungai8482 Yup, 100% correct. My fault.
Africa has so much potential upside, it really is about finding the teams on the continent that know how to execute within their markets.
Just repeating meaningless business jargon. Clueless!
Yah Africa is a market waiting to explode it just needs greater connectivity and to be more widespread modernization
Agreed, more US companies should be setting up branches in Africa.
I am a 16 years old Boy and I am passionnate about Business and Tech, And I will be launchching my Billion Dollar FinTech App in 2 years
Last time I went to Kenya it was pretty trippy going from the pastorlist areas of the Turkana then driving down into Nairobi and seeing thick glasses wearing hipsters in cafes. And MPesa is EVERYWHERE. Even the Maasai use it!
One area many Africans are lacking is lack of computer labs in schools, I am in Somalia and there is no computers to learn basic IT, coding etc and that makes hard to get talent to build next tech innovations. We hope those big tech companies help schools get basic IT equipment across Africa particularly Somalia.
Really happy to see the future of AFRICA
go Africa love from Australia. loved my visit to Kenyan nicest people ever.
Love from Gabon 🇬🇦..let's go Kenya let's go Africa
I really hope Africa become a developed continent within 2100. Africa has the potential to become the future of humanity.
Kenyans are obsessed with tech and the internet, commenting from Nairobi
This is real Africa news, not the relentless negativity and fixation on social issues you see in France24 or BBC.
You're right. We Europeans have kind of lost hope in positive changes, sorry for that. It's not personal, it's part of a wider nihilism and pessimism towards everything in the world. Show us we're wrong!
@@ViriatoII We have no obligation to prove anything to you
@@mwanikimwaniki6801 I wasn't trying to fight, just wishing you to prove us wrong. I'll even edit that to "show us we're wrong!"
@@ViriatoII -Nihilism, pessimism, and absolute misery. You're right about that. That's all I see in the West and add to that violence in America in spite of Westerners being surrounded by trappings of "wealth". So sad,
@@ViriatoII I understand you and sorry for my broad here, we're becoming highly defensive in Africa😅
I can't remember the last time I handled physical cash - thanks to MPESA.
I am glad to see Bloomberg showing Africa's startup scene, more of this visibility will solve the problem.
Cash is the only way.
Keep our freedoms. Use CASH.
First world still in the stone age of using cards
It was funny going into traditional Maasai area and seeing signs that said "MPesa accepted". It's everywhere now.
Mpesa has been a real gamechanger. Looking forward to more local innovations in AI and metaverse.
But who owns mpesa?
Africa is the future .
M-pesa was a success even before the world realized it. I think the same energy needs to be reciprocated in our African health sector.
This is so awesome to see! I hope tech brings prosperity to Africa.
This is absolutely amazing! I wish all of these companies the utmost success!
It's time for Africa to become one of the economic superpowers.
Africa is a continent not a country.
@@shangothunder1055 That's why i said Africa, not Nigeria. Lol.
@@shangothunder1055 Africa usually votes in the international stage as one bloc.
I'll go one step further - what is a nation? The concept of a nation is made up. It is whatever the entity that some group of people recognise they are part of.
Sure, Africa has dozens of countries - mostly artificially drawn by European Imperial past. But it's important to know that it is exactly only that. What Africa is - whether it's a nation or regions or states or whatever is up to people living in Africa, and we should not try to use our westernised concepts to condescend them into telling them they are what we think they are rather than what they decide to be.
Also, even if we do take the western definitions (the borders are there like it or not) much rather like none of any individual nations in European Union has any influence or presence in international stage, but European Union does, you can say the same about Africa (as a bloc). Africa could be considered an entity as they behave as such.
So spare us your condescension. I think the more interesting question is can Africa do it and if so - how?
@@raccoonious4038 No it doesn’t.
@@shangothunder1055 Yeah but it has a strong identity like the US. So its almost like a country
Africa needs its own Black-owned versions of Facebook, Twitter, TikTok, RUclips, WhatsApp, Netflix, Visa card, Spotify etc.
so that we can cut down on a lot of toxicity brought by social media and stop consuming western perspective
Hundred percent
America will hate it though
Exactly👏🏼
Black owned ? most of does companies are publickly listed anyone can own shares in them.
I see great potentials in Africa, and it can accelerate faster with Nigeria and Kenya tech hubs collaborating (more), then helping South Africa and Egypt get on board to cover to cover and support the four regional markets.
Nothing can get Africa to one currency and single market faster than unified tech hubs platform
i can't speak on Egypt but SA already has a thriving tech scene,Cape Town is literally the start up capital of the continent .
people dont know that egyptians are in kenya and sudan,kenya has great thinking capacity,people have ideas that need investments and given opportunity they have a wired brain that will awaken and make ideas never thought before,nigeria and zambia have great minds too
4:04 It wouldn't be a video about tech startups without footage of a foosball table.
Not mentioned is how much talent is lost to brain drain to the US and Europe where there is better pay. Also nearly all the investment is in fintech.
Tech business in places like Kenya has no brain drain.. actually it's opposite.
If money is the motivation, brain drain will continue for a long time.
In Nigeria this is so true... I worked for a bank in Nigeria as an enterprise network engineer, between 2020 and 2022, Nigeria has suffered the biggest brain drain problem in Africa, virtually everyone I know is leaving to either Canada or UK... Cos our government is full of idiots.
The world has been undermining our knowledge,our power ,our capacities.we rising 💪🏾
Further proof that being plundered for centuries cannot stop the source of true greatness!
Really happy see them flourishing.
Love to see the growth.
Love this esp how Nigeria gave Kenya a run for its money. As a Kenyan, I am ashamed but as an African very proud of our bggest and important economy, Nigeria. Kudos Africa.
Why will you be ashamed of being Kenya.... In terms of corruption, no African country has it bad than Nigeria, Nigeria has some of the most talented and enterprising young people in the Continent but corruption has continued to stifle business here in.... As long as we are surviving it and making something out of it, be proud of who you are or where you come from.... I am Nigerian by the way.
LoL.
It's like saying china gave Philippine a run for its money.
It's the other way round, bro.
Nigeria has more unicorns than Kenya and more tech talents.
It's interesting how this historiography of African start-ups centres on companies that tapped into foreign funding. It's the only reason why you'd think Nigeria came to tech start-ups late. Companies like interswitch (one of the four unicorns referenced in the story) and ValuCard (now UPS) started as JVs of Nigerian banks from the late 90s/early 2000s. By 2003/4, ValuCard became first African fintech (that term wasn't common then) to receive direct investment in an EMV company.
What you are saying is true but to be honest, it was not until Mpesa was invented in Kenya in 2007 that the world took notice of Africa's tech space. Mpesa and other similar mobile money products took Africa by storm and led to the formation of the hundreds of fintechs that we see today. Landing of the fibre optic cable also helped boost Africa's tech space.
@@tkk3852 What dies it matter if the 'world' didn't take notice of our own development model? My point exactly is that we need to question narratives that centre western intervention. The fact is that the growth of the digital space in Nigeria is not some fluke, but a legacy close to three decades of tech ecosystem building. Just as it's entertainment is beneficiary of 60years of tv production. These things are not flukes.
@ deji&jinmi Word
Go Kenya. Biggest threat to investment in many African countries for private investors (as opposed to state sponsored investors from you know where) is political instability and corruption. What we don’t want is another software startup in Africa. Let start solving real issues of poverty such as shortage of education, water and energy and housing that can be used everywhere in the world. The most important being higher mass education.
Unfortunately external investors want to make money in the short term which is not necessarily aligns with what the country needs for the long term.
Go Kenya.
Innovation (which Startups fall under) can help with all that. You cannot expect to get ahead as a country if you are always depending on another country to innovate the technology you need. You can do both at the same time.
I like yo analogy
You know nothing, hope you have something to show for your theory.
Africa is the future and the future is now!
Great video!
Inspiring!
Patent laws or rights are killing African start-ups. For example mpesa was patented by Vodacom and took huge amounts of money from the economy!
Africa has a promising future in Tech.
Africa as a continent is larger than USA, China and India combined. Can’t we have identity the countries in the continent and not the continent as a whole?
nah because the continent is growing as a whole plus due to AFCTA the largest trade agreement on earth Africa now acts as a single market under the law.
i think its beneficial to Africa to move trade & brand globally as a block (AfCFTA is great), but you can't really say that the reality of tech founders living in the leafy suburbs of Cape Town is similar to a start-up founder looking for funding in CAR or DRC. By grouping the continent, we may be doing a disservice & increasing gaps further
@@lm_b5080 I agree it will take decades to fully come to into effect, but starting somewhere is the first obstacle.
You should. But the imperialist Western minds still group Africa as one, similar to how Asians are lumped into one group.
Wow. This is impressive.
Thank you.
This is commendable
Nice to see the African startup scene. I wish they move more and more into Asian economies like India, China , Bangladesh and ASEAN . And Asian startups should start infusing capital in the budding startups of Africa . 👍👍😃
its not Africa its kenya
Lol china don't need it, china has complete internet chain ecosytem😂😂
@@mungai8482 So Kenya isn't Africa? Speaking English doesn't make you European.
@@asternoah5534 Isn't the earth in the solar system...isn't that in the galaxy so on n so fourth whats your point Noah? having a brain doen't make you smart man from the ark..Its a continent not a country...we specify when mentioning European countries and in the states we specify which city and state so come correct when you talking about the wealth generator of the world...the gem,the goldmine of music culture cobald diamonds you name it....every country is amazing and unique in its right...specify that Cobalt is from The DRC not from Africa...so on n so fourth peace punk.
I was also wondering why she didn't mention any Asian countries 🤔
Quite encouraging with the upsurge in unicorns but I am still worried that Africa is still not benefiting enough as the many external multinationals who provide the startup investments or funding do not allow a return-on-investments to close Africa's widening inequality gap.
Flutterwave sorta reminds me of SWIFT, although in a fledgling form. I'd suggest they expand and fully integrate themselves all over the continent first before entering western markets.
Would be smart of their part
Exactly they should expand into the Caribbean and South america first also. Flutterwave solves the issue of multiple currencies, which is something that exist in the Caribbean and South america more than in the USA or European Union.
they are looking the wrong way, decentralized crypto is the answer... lol they are just copying west old structure instead of following the new wave
Yes. Absolutely. Hope they take note of your point.
Thanks Bloomberg for covering this topic
China investment: “it is debt trap! “
US investment: “great opportunities for Africa!”
Why don't u take that to your mother bedroom where u were conceived
Sad truth..
@@scorpio6416 China invests on the government. Others invest on people that's what I would put it
@@scorpio6416 what a manipulations ....
African startup founder here. Not sure if it’s weird to look for seed investors in RUclips comments 😅 If you’re interested in a pitch you can reach out 🙏🏾 this is kind of a Hail Mary so, sorry for the abruptness
Not the typical way when looking for investors. However, best of luck to you
how do I contact you
@@ricecripsies4099 they probably had a LinkedIn
check sizes you’re looking for?
You miss a vital information; how can we look you up? Tip: always make it easy for people to reach out.
Kudos.
These investment aim in just one industry that what surprises me.
They all look for tech industry and not the others for us who aim for other industry we are left behind. I think we need to give these other industry start ups another eye.
Look at Canada, Tech and Real Estate is driving the wave. EV will be the next big industry. Africa should actually ramp up Tech education/growth, it is the 4th industrial revolution and we shouldn't miss on this.
African diaspora, make sure you get in on this! You know who can’t always be on 🔝 (both of them)
The population of the world is diminishing. Europe, America, Asia. Just more and more old people. The only place with lots of young people *hungry* for bettering their lives is Africa. Rwanda, Nigeria, Kenya etc. These are the future tech-capitals of the world.
And this is why we have built daba finance. We want to make it easy for anyone to be able to tap in the most exciting economic region of the world: Africa!
Of interest too is Amazon has just initiated a major operation in cape town
2 trillion dollar companies just moved to Nairobi. Google and Amazon. Google development center which is a first in Africa.
Also Nigeria too both companies
what are you saying bro?😂 Amazon is currently building their African headquarters in Cape Town South Africa so i dont know what you are bragging about.
@@sykewtf9820just check from Netflix Africa, Starlink, Google, BBC, Air France, IBM, , etc are all being situated in Kenya for a reason..... Amazon is not common in East Africa and that's why it was moved to Capetown
Bloomberg tells African stories so authentically and in an inspiring way! Shout out to you.
the motherland
Great 👍
Africa's Century!!
Never forget that those who own the fiber cable into a country have the power to influence and without natural resources a computer, mobile phone would not exist.
Mpesa actually revolutionalised mobile money in the world!
M pesa was also in India...by Vodafone
Beautiful marketing for our LOVELY COUNTRY... BEAUTIFUL.
Wow Beautiful Kenya 🇰🇪
The entire video old mentions Nigeria, South Africa, Kenya and Egypt. You can’t call this an African trend if it only happening in 4/54 Countries in on the Continent. The lack of specificity is a major disservice to a lot of countries that are capital starved.
You're right, but we gotta start somewhere. Highlighting the places that have had success to inspire and show other ways of supporting this movement so that hopefully these can lead to improvements of those countries with lesser capital does not seem like a disservice to me
Its a start. Stop hating.
@@MrSupernova111 it’s not hate. it’s a critique.
At one point they specifically make that point? It's at 11:40.
@@lemonhead1256 . There is nothing to "critique." You ever built anything in your life? You have to start somewhere. Get it through your thick head.
Let’s go Africa
this makes me happy 🤩
The money is in manufacturing and farming. Software is secondary. We don't have a African computer. Invest in value addition. Tech startup are focused in urban areas we struggle with electricity and data.
Meanwhile… leaving out South Africa…
Mpesa is not a start-up its been active for more than 10yrs. It's its own financial system.
Next time put the names of the speakers, so that people can be abe to contact or reach them - Great video though. As a software engineer with a startup i am looking for ways to develop relationships with people who can help
Women led women owned...we don't care. We want competence and that is it.
Exactly.
@MsZoomification Why does "women led women owned" matter?
@MsZoomification My question was why was it important for you.
*Asia and Africa needs to trade and invest in each others market more.*
Edit: I just realised yt is removing my reply to my own comment. Crazy level of censorship going on, it seems.
100%
Africa doesn't have much to offer Asia besides arable land for food and minerals. Asia would dominate in intellectual property and destroy all these African start-ups.
@@zinjanthropus322 Possibly
@@zinjanthropus322 >>> You’d be surprised.
@@itumo2645 American and European tech workers are being outmatched by Asians and somehow you imagine Africans can directly compete? That's not where our advantages lie.
KENYA KENYA KENYA Na vile tunasumbuka kupata hata internships pekee.
A growing economy doesn't create jobs only it creates opportunities beyond jobs ....you must find your niche
8:32 that’s zuck with Bihari in Lagos not Kenya
We are Global African Indigenous people!! Love and Unity is the best key for us all together!!💯 Also Giving thanks to the Great Mother's/Goddesses and Great Father's/Gods and the Ancestors and Guardians!! Saying from Snefer aka Bashiyr!!👸🏿🤴🏿
lookout for safiboda startup this year
Sad thing about Nigeria is the regulatory environment is literally stifling innovative startups and forcing them to migrate. I believe Flutterwave and Andela have already upped sticks (their HQ's at least).
This along with corruption needs to be a priority. Buddy works for GE and was telling me how much bribes play a role on wether your petition/surveys are even looked at.
You are always quick to write negativity about Nigeria yet Nigeria is clearly leading the Tech space with 4 out of the 6 unicorns in Africa and more successful start up emerging yearly from Nigeria. Irrespective of what happens in Nigeria, Nigerians thrive so you should rather focus your energy on perfect environment created in your country.
@@amosadewuni460 Corruption is a deteriorating factor in Afrika I guess, same in Kenya.
They are going Nowhere.
Nigeria is where their bread is buttered.
And startups are popping up every day.
@@Freedmen-American-Reparations Sad thing is speaking without a lack of understanding. Nigeria's largest diaspora is in the U.S. and it numbers somewhere around 500,000 tops. This is a country of over 200 million folks - do the math. Nigerians are in Nigeria. And company's relocating their HQs is because they are globally minded in terms of expansion, something other Africans may want to pick up from Nigeria. Andela has sights on Latin America, and as you heard Flutterwave is positioning itself as a global company, rather than merely a national/regional company. And all this would accrue to the benefits of Nigerian pockets/economy. You view is jaundiced because of your own limitations.
Africa is the future
The future is African
history repeats itself
Wakanda Forever!
Africa is a continent and not a country. Be country specific when making documentaries on the tech developments.
People really think Africa is country in this day and age
@@sophia-yd3ds "I BLESS THE RAINS DOWN IN AAAAFRICAAAA!"
They will grow if they are solving real African problems
Pretty coo!
My concern is that do tech startups (providing services) produce jobs? I understand software developers are needed, but how can tech startups employ young Nigerians? Because Africa's problem is the inability to turn raw materials into refined ones, which are sold at higher prices. That, to me, brings in money into the county, which can then be disseminated throughout the country. But one company creating services like a mobile banking system makes things easier but does not create jobs.
Thousands of software dev jobs, smartphone oriented jobs, and even agent networks. Many jobs can be made and do get made.
Please, abandon that stone-age thinking
Many things can be true at one time. Plus on a macro level, tech creates opportunities (e.g., mobile banking eliminates lots of hurdles in the commerce of "market women" which in the aggregate creates greater wealth)
You cannot have that industrialization process without these modern services businesses.
Are you currently hiring in Africa?
MummyAfrica needs private investment and entrepreneurship so this is a more positive video than seeing 'MummyAfrica got loans from a Chinese state-owned, CPC-controlled company' which is corrupt MummyAfrican politicians taking their countries into irrational, impoverishing debt.
MummyAfrica needs to gain a variety of investment means from private institutions, not state organisations❕️
Father Africa*
Great vid Bloomberg, but remember that Kenya is not Africa, so to say investors are piling into African startups but you're only talking about Kenyan companies is just not fair. We are doing far more awesome things here in South Africa and Southern Africa as a whole but no light is being shone there, I am telling you there is massive innovation in the fintech sector and energy sector too here in South Africa.
Nigeria has 4 out of 6 African tech unicorns, yet very little was said about Nigeria.
It's not a competition guys.
How does it feel for once when Kenya and Nigeria get the shine? South Africa always gets the shine. For once South Africa has not been mentioned and you are up in arms. To be honest Kenya's and Nigeria's tech start up space is more vibrant than South Africa's at the moment, looking at amount of funding raised and number of start ups produced.
Kenya is Africa we are a country in Africa how are we not Africa
@@solomonobihan9465Nigeria is literally the unicorn capital of the continent.
The new gold rush
A lot of foreign investors still are guilty to unfair benefit sharing. Western corporations have an advantage versus African ideas as they have pressure to monetizing ideas.
Ayeee lesss go Africa!!!! I want Africa to win so bad because I want to retire there
AFRICA IS THE FUTURE.
Enable the clip feature to really go viral
Wonder what's the catch
I was with you up until the women only nonsense. People who want to invest in something only care that it is going to make them money. It has nothing to do with what whoever is running looks like or identifies as because people only really care about whether it will earn them money. In fact I can see all the "women owned", "black owned", etc. branding as being detrimental as it inherently implies that that aspect of the business is significant when it is only really significant to marketing to a particular clientele.
I'm blessed to be african.
Why doesn’t flutterwave focus on developing countries outside of Africa? Bases in already developed countries that already has access to that type of tech should not be the focus but what do I know.
Thinking the same thing why not go after South America. First world countries are so fought after by the giants that they just can’t compete
Yup. Stay in the developed countries, they will be able to grow with those countries as their economies grow. But trying to break into Europe, America... ehhh, that seems like a genuine waste of capital. Unless they can provide something this US companies cannot. It doesn't really make sense
Eh cause africa is low hanging fruit. Simple. Why go to places your not loved. Lol. A waste of time.
Potential for growth is so minimal in already developed countries. How much room do tech giants such as Amazon or Apple really have to grow compared to start ups in Africa that have potential to create a monopoly over the entire continent
I don’t really see them making that mistake. Because I watched an interview with one of the the founders, Iyin, when he revealed that one of the reasons he relocated from Canada to Lagos, Nigeria, was exactly because those Western countries were already saturated with similar technology. There was hardly any room to grow as consumers already had access to such technologies.
I believe the way to go for them will be to look for markets in developing countries. Truth is, they haven’t even scratched the surface in Nigeria.
Kenya is lit 🔥
Jessica Colaco is a legend.
Great stuff! I struggle to see how women are particularly disadvantaged here though, that felt like a bit of a reach.
Are the sweet 'now comes Africa' headlines on already? Usually you wait for the summer break. Why not do a migraines story? Haven't heard one since last year