Funding is flowing back into the African tech sector as startups across the continent pulled in a combined $1.35 billion in the first half of 2025, the strongest H1 performance since 2022 and a 78% jump from the same period last year.
Revealed by Africa: The Big Deal, the resurgence has been driven by a steady stream of sizeable deals in equity and debt, with June standing out as a particularly aggressive month.
Alone, the month saw $365 million in funding, the highest monthly total in nearly a year. This pushed the monthly average for H1 to $237 million, a rise from $133 million in H1 2024 and even above the 2024 full-year average of $187 million.
But this rebound didn’t happen overnight. Of the six months in H1 2025, four crossed $250 million. Even March, which saw a steep dip, has faded from memory in the face of strong activity in both equity and debt funding.
Equity deals made up the lion’s share, reaching $950 million, up 79% year-on-year. However, it came in just below the $1.02 billion raised in the second half of 2024, showing signs of stabilisation.
The debt market, on the other hand, had a slower start. By May, debt funding stood at $177 million, down from $255 million during the same period last year.
Then came June, Wave’s $137 million debt round changed the game. With that and a few other sizeable deals, H1 closed with $400 million in total debt funding, matching H2 2024 and improving 55% from H1 2024.
East and West Africa painted a contrasting picture. Kenya and Senegal emerged as the strongest performers, accounting for several of the top ten deals in June.
Senegal’s Wave led with the $137 million debt round to strengthen its mobile money infrastructure. Kenya followed closely with M-KOPA securing a $51 million loan to scale its digital financial services and PowerGen closing $50 million for clean energy expansion.
In contrast, Nigeria, long regarded as the continent’s funding magnet, slipped noticeably. No Nigerian startup featured among the top ten fundraisers in May.
There’s also been a transition in the sectors attracting capital. Fintech still commands the largest slice of the pie, but cleantech and healthtech are no longer niche.
Companies like Burn Manufacturing in Kenya and Wetility in South Africa raised sizeable rounds for clean energy projects. MyDawa, a Kenyan healthtech platform, secured $9.6 million to grow its digital pharmaceutical services.
Despite the strong H1 showing, total funding in H1 2025 is almost identical to H2 2024, down just 1.5%. That shows a market that may have found its ceiling, at least for now.
Still, the recovery for African startups is real. Compared to the funding drought of early 2024, what we’re seeing now is a reversal. The challenge going forward is whether this growth is sustainable, or simply the system catching its breath before the next storm.
A full breakdown is expected at the Africa: The Big Deal LinkedIn Live event on July 22.
