Key highlights
- Africa secured US$3.6 billion in venture capital funding, including US$1.0 billion from venture debt.
- African investors formed the single largest group of active VC participants in the region for the first time, up from 19% a decade ago
- Technology-enabled companies drove VC deal flow across various sectors – with FinTech leading while CleanTech and AI gain momentum
- Despite global fundraising headwinds, the value of final fund closes in Africa rose to US$736 million (+41% YoY), reflecting continued investor confidence in the region.
AVCA—the African Private Capital Association—has announced the release of the 2024 Venture Capital in Africa Report.
This comprehensive analysis provides in-depth insights on market trends, fundraising, exits and investor dynamics, backed by AVCA’s unrivalled decade-long data sets.
The sixth edition of AVCA’s annual report reveals that Africa experienced a market correction a year after global markets, with the continent reaching its funding low in H1 2024—highlighting the delayed but pronounced impact on dealmaking during a period of inflation, supply chain disruptions and geopolitical shocks.
The report finds that 2024 was a challenging year for African startups, noting a 22% year-over-year (YoY) decline in deal value and 28% drop in deal volume.
While global venture capital value rose 6% and volume fell 24%, Africa’s sharper contractions reflect the continent’s delayed downturn cycle.
Venture debt lenders comprised only 12% of deal volume yet generated 37% of VC deal value in 2024. The 3% YoY increase in deal value and volume signals continued investor appetite for the asset class.
The geographic distribution reveals that West Africa maintained its lead as the most active region for the fourth consecutive year, accounting for 23% of total deal volume, with Nigeria leading at 16%.
The ‘Big 4’ markets (Nigeria, Egypt, Kenya, South Africa) represented 55% of volume and 64% of value.
FinTech remained dominant with 116 deals raising US$1.4 billion (34% of all tech-enabled rounds). Clean & ClimateТech rose to 13% of tech-enabled deal volume, up from a 7% five-year average, while AI made its first appearance among the top four most funded verticals with 42 deals raising US$108 million.
In a significant milestone, African investors emerged as the single largest group of active participants in VC, representing 31% of the total investor pool compared to 19% a decade ago.
This underscores the momentum in domestic capital formation despite overall investor participation declining 21% from 2023 to 614 active investors.
The fundraising environment showed remarkable resilience, with eight funds closing at US$736 million in 2024 alone, a 41% YoY increase that underscores the positive, long-term growth of Africa’s VC ecosystem despite global headwinds.
Since 2015, 35 fund managers across 41 funds have raised US$2.7 billion in final closes, reflecting a 25% CAGR.
The exit landscape is gaining momentum, with 138 exits recorded between 2019 and 2024—reflecting a clear upward trend over time, despite remaining flat in 2024 with 26 exits recorded.
Trade sales continued to dominate that year, accounting for 84% of all exits with an average holding period of 3.8 years.
Abi Mustapha-Maduakor, CEO of AVCA, said:
“The data demonstrates how Africa’s venture ecosystem is responding to global challenges with notable resilience. While overall funding has contracted, we’re seeing strategic adaptations—higher quality deals, sector diversification beyond fintech, increased venture debt utilisation, and the strengthening role of African investors. These responses reflect a maturing market that continues to present compelling opportunities. We remain optimistic about the venture landscape in Africa, particularly as it offers investors unique exposure to fast-growing markets with demographic advantages and innovation potential compared to more traditional investment destinations.”
