Kenyan startups pulled in almost US$1 billion in funding in 2025, making the country Africa’s biggest fundraising market for the first time since 2022, according to figures from Africa: The Big Deal. The surge was driven mainly by debt flowing into energy and asset-heavy businesses.
Funding into Kenya jumped 52% from the previous year and made up nearly a third of all startup capital raised across Africa. Roughly 60% of the money came as debt, largely going to solar and energy access firms such as d.light, Sun King, M-Kopa, Burn and PowerGen. At the same time, the number of Kenyan startups raising at least US$100,000 dropped by 23%, the steepest fall among Africa’s four largest startup hubs.
Big-ticket deals in 2025 were dominated by energy and fintech companies, reflecting a growing investor preference for firms with stable cash flows and assets that can be financed more like infrastructure than traditional venture capital.
Across Africa, startups raised US$3.2 billion in 2025, up 40% from 2024 and the first annual increase after two years of decline. Even so, fundraising remained below the record levels seen in 2022.
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Kenya, Egypt, Nigeria and South Africa continued to dominate the landscape, taking in 82% of all startup funding on the continent, a pattern that has barely shifted since 2019. Their grip was even tighter for large deals, with more than 80% of funding rounds above US$10 million going to companies based in those four countries.
Egypt came in second with US$614 million, also up 51% year on year, split fairly evenly between equity and debt. It was Africa’s second-largest destination for debt funding and saw 61 companies raise at least US$100,000.
South Africa followed closely with US$600 million, a 51% increase, but unlike Kenya, over 90% of its funding came from equity. Deal activity surged too, with 83 ventures raising more than US$100,000, confirming its position as the continent’s main equity-driven startup market.
Nigeria lagged behind its peers, raising US$343 million, down 17% from 2024. Its share of Africa’s total funding slipped to 11%, the lowest since 2019, as equity investment fell sharply. Even so, it remained Africa’s busiest market by number of deals, with 86 startups raising at least US$100,000, pointing to a move towards smaller, lower-risk investments.
Beyond the big four, only Senegal and Benin crossed the US$100 million mark. Senegal reached US$157 million, boosted by a large debt round for fintech Wave, while Benin climbed to sixth place after Spiro secured US$100 million. Countries such as Ghana, Morocco, Tunisia, Rwanda and Uganda each attracted between US$10 million and US$100 million, though 26 African nations recorded no startup deal above US$100,000.
Eastern Africa led all regions with 34% of total funding, followed by West Africa at 24%, North Africa at 23% and Southern Africa at 19%. West Africa’s share slipped as Nigeria’s downturn outweighed gains elsewhere.
Since 2019, African startups have raised nearly US$20 billion, but only 33 companies have passed the US$100 million mark. The rebound in 2025 made one thing clear: most of the money is now flowing to a small group of established firms in a handful of mature markets.
