African tech startup investments fell by more than 50 per cent to US$1.1 billion in 2024 due to the global capital shortage, according to the 10th edition of the annual African Tech Startups Funding Report by Disrupt Africa and Art of Scale.
According to the report, 200 startups raised a combined total of US$1.1 billion over the course of the year, compared to 406 startups which raised US$2.4 billion in 2023, an 100 percent and 50 percent decline in the number and volumes raised respectively.
According to Disrupt Africa co-founder Gabriella Mulligan, “2024 was a very difficult year indeed for African tech from a funding perspective, with a significant decline in investment for the second year in a row. Many startups out there are struggling, but this is not a phenomenon unique to Africa, and indeed we are not seeing the same levels of decline as witnessed elsewhere in the world. And with Q4 2024 and Q1 2025 numbers on the up, we can at least hope that the end of the crisis is near.”
The number of active investors fell again, but 35 per cent, while M&A activity also witnessed a significant decline.
Though each of the so-called “big four” of African tech – Nigeria, Egypt, Kenya and South Africa – raised significantly less funding than in 2023, they retained their overall share of funding, as capital remained focused on markets perceived as being less risky during the global capital shortage.
Fintech once again proved by far and away the most popular sector for investors in African tech startups in 2024, yet it saw a second successive year of decline, and indeed declined at a greater rate.
Aside from providing a full list of the funded startups, who invested in them, and, where possible, the amount raised, from the previous year, the annual reports also provide deep-dives into investment trends within key startup geographies and verticals, as well as data on African startup acquisitions.
