10 Nigerian startups that raised biggest funds in 2024

• Nigerian startups secured $410 million in investments in 2024
• The amount represents 69.84 per cent of the $587 million raised by startups in West Africa in 2024
• TheRadar spotlights the top 10 Nigerian startups that raised the biggest funds in 2024

According to a report by Africa: The Big Deal, Nigerian startups attracted $410 million of the $2.2 billion in funding secured by African startups in 2024.

The country also accounts for 69.84 per cent of the $587 million raised by startups in West Africa in 2024.

Nigeria remains a key player in Africa’s startup funding landscape and is one of the Big Four—Kenya, Nigeria, Egypt, and South Africa—which attracted 84 percent of all start-up funding (excluding exits) on the continent in 2024, continuing their dominance since 2019.

Out of the $2.2 billion funding raised by African startups in 2024, the East African region attracted the highest startup funding on the continent, worth $725 million, with Kenya accounting for $638 million or 88 per cent of the region’s total raise in the year, primarily driven by climate tech investments.

The West African region attracted the second largest funding on the continent with $587 million, 27 per cent of total funding and a three per cent drop from 2023, led by Nigeria’s $410 million funding raise.

North Africa attracted $478 million in 2024, a 35 per cent drop from the previous year. The region was led by Egypt, whose funding dropped by 37 per cent to account for $400 million or 84 per cent of the region’s total.

In Southern Africa, total funding dropped by 36 per cent to $397 million, with South Africa contributing $394 million, representing 99.4 per cent of the region’s total.

Top 10 Nigerian startups by funds raised in 2024

1. Moove

In 2024, Nigerian vehicle financing startup, Moove, raised a total of $110 million from two major fund raising rounds.

The startup secured $100 million in March 2024 in a Series B round led by Uber, which saw its valuation hit $750 million.

Other investors in the round include Mubadala, The Latest Ventures, AfricInvest, Palm Drive Capital, Triatlum Advisors, and Future Africa.

The funding was to support Moove’s expansion into new markets, reinforce its presence in existing regions, and scale its operations.

Moove also raised $10 million in debt funding from Stride Ventures to support its growing presence in India, where it operates in Bengaluru, Mumbai, and Hyderabad. With plans to expand to Delhi, Pune, and Kolkata, Moove aims to increase the number of vehicles on its platform to over 5,000.

2. Moniepoint

On October 29, 2024, Nigeria-based Moniepoint Inc. raised $110 million in equity financing to become Africa’s eighth startup to have achieved unicorn status.

Moniepoint joined Africa’s unicorn league that already had the likes of Interswitch, Opay, Flutterwave, Wave, Andela, Chipper, and MNT-Halan.

The round was led by Development Partners International (DPI) and other new investors including Google’s Africa Investment Fund and Verod Capital. Global impact firm, Lightrock, an existing investor, also participated in the funding round.

The Series C financing round further boosted the fintech’s valuation to at least $1 billion, increasing from around $400 million in a 2022 funding round where it raised $50 million.

The funding will drive Moniepoint’s expansion across Africa, enhancing its platform to offer businesses a suite of financial services, including digital payments, banking, cross-border transactions, credit, and business management tools.

Moniepoint also aims to extend its services to the informal sector, which accounts for more than 83 per cent of employment across Africa.

3. Yellow Card

In 2024, Yellow Card, Africa’s most-funded cryptocurrency exchange, raised $33 million in a Series C round, bringing its total funding to $88 million.

The funding was led by venture firm, Blockchain Capital, that has also invested in Coinbase, Kraken, OpenSea, and Worldcoin.

The Nigeria-launched platform, which initially focused on retail customers, has now shifted its strategy towards serving businesses, offering them treasury management and stablecoin transactions.

4. Konexa

Fourth on the list of the top 10 Nigerian startups with the biggest funds raised in 2024 is UK-based energy firm, Konexa.

Konexa secured an $18 million investment from Climate Fund Managers (CFM) and Microsoft’s Climate Innovation Fund to establish a private renewable electricity trading platform in Nigeria.

The project aims to supply 100 per cent green energy to two Nigerian Breweries facilities, transitioning them from fossil fuels to renewable hydroelectric power.

In 2022, Konexa received a private energy trading license from the Nigerian Energy Regulatory Commission (NERC) to source power from independent producers and transport it across the national grid.

The inaugural project will transmit renewable energy from the 30 megawatts Gurara Hydro Power Plant in Kaduna State, operated by North South Power Company Limited.

5. Tomato Jos

On March 22, 2024, Tomato Jos, a Nigeria-based agribusiness startup that specialises in tomato processing and value chain development, secured $12.2 million in a later-stage venture capital funding round.

The funding was to support the company’s expansion, enhance production capacity, and strengthen its supply chain.

Tomato Jos, founded in 2014 by Mira Mehta, focuses on boosting local tomato farming, reducing post-harvest losses, and increasing Nigeria’s self-sufficiency in tomato paste production.

The company works closely with smallholder farmers, providing them with improved seeds, training, and access to markets. It has built a vertically integrated model that extends across farming, processing, and distribution.

6. Beacon Power Services

Beacon Power Services (BPS), a US-headquartered energy technology company focused on optimising electricity distribution in Africa, occupies the sixth position.

The startup raised $12 million in a Series A funding round led by Partech, with participation from Finnfund, Gaia Impact Fund, Proparco, Kaleo Ventures, Seedstars Africa Ventures, Clermount, Global Brain Corporation, JGC MIRAI Innovation Fund, and OnCapital.

The investment was to support BPS’s expansion into Eastern and Southern Africa while enhancing its AI-powered grid management solutions that help utilities improve power distribution, reduce outages, and optimise operations.

BPS was founded by Bimbola Adisa, a Nigerian entrepreneur, with a presence in Nigeria and Ghana.

7. Field

Field, a Nigerian health tech company founded in 2015 by Michael Moreland and Justin Lorenzo, raised $11 million in investment from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and leverages Field’s proprietary technology, distribution network, and financing services.

The funding would be used on its route-to-market service introduced in September 2024, aimed at expanding access to life-saving therapies for maternal mortality, newborn and child health, and nutrition.

Field’s platform has a network of over 40,000 private and public healthcare providers in both rural and urban areas of Kenya and Nigeria, and operates as a pharmaceutical supply chain working to reshape the pharma value chain.

8. OmniRetail

With a $10 million investment secured in March 2024, OmniRetail is the eighth-ranked  Nigerian startup that raised large funds in 2024.

Lagos-based B2B e-commerce startup OmniRetail, founded in 2019 by Deepankar Rustagi, secured the investment from Goodwell VC and several development finance institutions (DFIs).

The funding was part of a Series A round, expected to increase OmniRetail’s valuation by 50 per cent compared to its previous round. According to PitchBook data, the company was last valued at $65 million.

OmniRetail specialises in digitising the trade value chain within Africa’s consumer goods distribution sector. It focuses on simplifying retail and distribution by providing digital platforms and embedded financial services.

9. Zone

In March 2024, Zone, a Nigerian payment infrastructure company, secured $8.5 million in an oversubscribed seed funding round to expand its domestic network and support cross-border payments across Africa.

The round was led by Flourish Ventures and TLcom Capital, with participation from Digital Currency Group (DCG), VKAV (Verod-Kepple Africa Ventures), and Alter Global.

The company said the fresh capital would be deployed to extend its network coverage, connect more banks and financial service providers, and conduct a comprehensive pilot programme for its cross-border payment capabilities in 2025.

Zone is also focused on expanding its footprint across Africa to facilitate seamless intra-African and global transactions, bringing it closer to its vision of becoming a leading global payment network. 

10. Waza

Tenth on the list is a Y Combinator-backed B2B payment and liquidity provider, Waza, which secured $8 million in equity and debt funding to expand beyond its operations in Ghana and Nigeria and introduce new trade finance solutions.

The funding included a $3 million seed equity round from investors such as Y Combinator, Byld Ventures, Norrsken Africa, Heirloom VC, Plug and Play Tech Center, and Olive Tree Capital, as well as $5 million in debt financing from Timon Capital to support trade finance for large enterprise clients.

Waza was founded by Maxwell Obi and Emmanuel Igbodudu, and operates as a money services business-registered entity in the U.S. and a licensed virtual asset service provider.

7 African AI startups founded by Nigerians

Meanwhile, TheRadar earlier reported that the Artificial Intelligence (AI) revolution brought about innovations and startups leveraging technology to address pressing human needs.

The African continent is not left behind in this wave of revolution. The continent boasts a handful of startups changing the world, most of which are founded by Nigerians or located in Nigeria, including these seven.