Ugandan online publisher and research firm DigestAfrica and other four African technology startups have closed funding deals from Founders Factory Africa and Standard Bank.
The other four startups are Schoolable, a Nigerian fintech with solutions for parents, and schools; LipaLater, a Kenyan lending marketplace; Eazyhire, a Nigerian platform that facilitates peer to peer leasing in Nigeria and Kenya; and Ghan’s Kudigo, a software as a service (SaaS) startup developing user-oriented retail solutions and big data for the consumer retail industry in sub-Saharan Africa.
Founded Peter Kisadha in 2017, DigestAfrica publishes startup news and gleans information and data about Africa’s early-stage technology companies to be consumed by investors and corporates.
In a statement, Founders Factory Africa said the firms will, on top of getting $40,000 cash and $280,000 in services, participate in its six-month Accelerator program where they will access “global venture and investment network and the wider Founders Family and ecosystem.”
The statement adds that the startups will get tailored support from a specialist team including product design, tech engineering, data science, growth marketing, investment, to name a few.
“Participating startups will also have access to global capital, talent and knowledge transfer through the Founders network that includes world-class entrepreneurs, investors, corporates and successful startups across Africa, Europe, the UK and the US.”
Speaking on the development, Roo Rogers, CEO, Founders Factory Africa, said, “DigestAfrica, LipaLater, Kudigo, Allpro, and EazyHire all represent the best of African leadership and innovation.
“Our investment and focus on growing pan-African products and market solutions will enable these exceptional entrepreneurs to address the needs of millions of people and deliver scaled financial and impact returns across the continent. Together with our multi-national corporate investors, we are excited to support these business on their pathway to scale.”
Standard Bank brings its significant African footprint, customer distribution networks and deep expertise that will help scale the selected businesses.
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Darren Segal, Executive and Head of Moonshots at Standard Bank said: “These businesses are just the start of an exciting journey working with Founders Factory Africa.
“We see huge potential to grow these businesses and create jobs. Through our partnership, there is also a unique opportunity to catalyze the start-up culture and early-stage investment into these ventures in Africa.”
Founders Factory Africa is a South African company operating across Africa delivering a corporate-backed accelerator and incubator.
It is building and scaling 140 tech-based startups across four sectors over the next five years. In October 2018, Standard Bank was the first investor into Founders Factory Africa, with fintech as its strategic sector.
Within the first few months of its launch, Founders Factory Africa received over 500 applications from leading fintech entrepreneurs across the continent. After a rigorous screening and selection process five businesses from Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya and Uganda were selected.
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