In the first half of 2023, Rwanda secured fifth position in fintech startup funding across Africa, according to data compiled by Afridigest's Fintech Transactions Database. ALSO READ: Positioning Kigali as a Pan African hub for FinTech and green finance Afridigest, a leading source for insights into Africa's tech ecosystem, conducted this ranking based on their tracking of financial activities from Week 1 to Week 26 in 2023. This encompassed equity fundraises, debt fundraises, and mergers and acquisition deals (M&A), excluding grants to align with international best practices in deal reporting. According to the report, Rwandan fintech startups exhibited impressive performance by raising a total of $6 million through two deals monitored by Afridigest during that period. Egypt emerged as the frontrunner on the list, securing a remarkable $402 million across seven deals. Following closely are South Africa, Kenya, and Nigeria, with funding amounts of $304 million, $280 million, and $90 million, respectively, achieved through 11, 13, and 31 deals, respectively. ALSO READ: What should Africa’s Fintech ecosystem do better? In aggregate, the 75 African fintech startups tracked by Afridigest collectively announced the raising of $1.2 billion in risk capital through 85 transactions. This equates to an average of 14 deals and approximately $200 million in funding raised per month. While the overall fundraising in the first half of 2023 witnessed a 21 percent decline compared to the same period in 2022, a closer examination reveals a more intricate narrative. The disparity becomes notably pronounced when distinguishing between equity and debt financing. According to the report, equity funding for African fintech companies experienced a drop of approximately 40 percent in the first half of 2022 compared to the previous year. Conversely, debt financing exhibited robust growth, surging by over 80 percent. The report highlights prominent entities within the Banking/Lending sector, encompassing lending platforms such as MNT-Halan and Lulalend, digital banks like TymeBank and FairMoney, as well as asset financing platforms like M-Kopa and Planet42.
