Latitude59 is set to hold on the third Latitude59 Kenya Edition from December 3–5, 2025 at the A.S.K Dome in Nairobi.

Bringing together founders, investors, policymakers, creatives, and tech talent, Lattitude59 will feature an Investor Day, curated pitch sessions, main-stage conversations, and policy labs designed to foster collaboration across borders.

According to Latitude59 CEO Liisi Org, “Latitude59 Kenya 2025 will inspire and equip early-stage entrepreneurs – from real founder journeys to tools that make AI your co-founder, while driving high-value matchmaking between startups, corporates, and investors.”

Lattitude59 key partners include ESTDEV and the Digital & Green Innovation (DGI) Action initiative among others.

Earlier this year, Latitude59 marked its 13th edition in Tallinn, Estonia, attracting over 3,500 participants, including more than 900 startup representatives and 20 national delegations.

Tickets for the Latitude59 Kenya Edition 2025, which will be held at A.S.K Dome in Nairobi, Kenya on December 3-5, are available now.

Egyptian grocery delivery platform Breadfast has raised $10 million from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) as part of an ongoing Series B2 funding round, according to EBRD’s official filings.

The round is being led by Africa-focused venture capital firm Novastar Ventures and has yet to be formally announced by the company.

The deal follows Breadfast’s $26 million Series A in late 2021, led by Sweden’s VNV Global. Based on VNV’s recent disclosures, Breadfast’s valuation has climbed to $382 million, making it one of the most valuable startups in Egypt. It remains unclear whether that valuation is tied to the B2 raise or a separate transaction.

Founded in 2017 by Mostafa Amin, Muhammed Habib, and Abdallah Nofal, Breadfast has grown into Egypt’s leading online grocery platform, offering 6,000+ SKUs with 60-minute delivery. The company operates across the value chain—from production to doorstep—backed by a network of 39 fulfillment points in four cities, most of which are already profitable.

Breadfast now delivers close to 1 million orders monthly to over 300,000 active users, with revenues continuing to climb in 2024 alongside improved profitability.

The new funding will fuel Breadfast’s push to scale its vertically integrated grocery model, including investments in bakeries, dark stores, and last-mile logistics infrastructure across Egypt.

In 2021, Breadfast raised $26 million in a Series A round led by Vostok New Ventures and Endure Capital, with participation from JAM Fund, led by Tinder’s co-founder, YC continuity fund, Shorooq Partners, 4DX Ventures, and Flexport.

KaChing, the startup that pioneered license plate recognition based ticketless parking in South Africa, has announced plans to cease operations on August 31, 2025, citing challenges in maintaining app performance and user growth amid rising competition.

Founded in 2015, KaChing was among the first companies in the region to digitize the parking experience, offering automatic entry, exit, and payment via vehicle license plate recognition. At its peak, the platform supported over a million parking transactions and more than 25,000 active users, positioning itself as a local leader in the smart mobility space.

But the company struggled to maintain momentum in recent years. Persistent app reliability issues and poor customer support feedback eroded user confidence, while newer entrants, most notably Admyt, scaled aggressively across major metropolitan areas. Admyt now operates in over 80 locations, supporting more than 400,000 registered vehicles and handling 10 million parking sessions monthly.

“KaChing was a first mover in a space that desperately needed innovation,” said a company spokesperson. “While we are proud of the product and market impact we have made, the time has come to step aside.”

The company is advising all users with prepaid account balances to request refunds by September 15, 2025 via its website.

Industry Consolidation Accelerates

KaChing’s exit underscores broader consolidation in the smart parking segment, where network effects and capital intensive infrastructure integration increasingly favor larger players. With real estate operators and mall groups now partnering with more robust solutions offering better uptime and user experience, smaller platforms are struggling to retain market share.

While KaChing’s shutdown closes a key chapter in South Africa’s digital parking evolution, it opens new ground for competitors aiming to scale beyond urban centers and into logistics, commercial real estate, and mobility as a service ecosystems.

500 Global, one of the world’s most active venture capital firms, has launched its first founder programs in Nairobi, in collaboration with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

500 Global says Nairobi will serve as host for three programs it will run in partnership with UNDP this year.

According to Mareme Dieng, Partner, 500 Global, “With the launch of these programs, we are excited for 500 Global to deepen our work with African entrepreneurs and to help them adapt to this new global landscape. We are looking forward to working closely with partners like UNDP across the continent to provide the infrastructure for sustained innovation and growth.”

In January this year, 500 Global launched 500 MENA, a new fund dedicated to investing in high-growth technology startups across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region.

500 MENA will invest in startups both from outside and inside the current 500 Global portfolio beyond the seed stage and to catalyze further the growth of the MENA region’s burgeoning tech ecosystem.

The launch of Nairobi programs adds to the many accelerators currently present in Nairobi building the entrepreneurship ecosystem across the region.

500 Global Nairobi’s first program, the Pre-Acceleration Academy, will support founders at the earliest stage of their journey through an in-person program running October 6 – 12th. The second program, the Sustainable Innovation Seed Accelerator, will provide support for seed-stage founders who are developing sustainable innovation solutions.

The third program, 500 Global’s Bootcamp for Accelerator Managers, is designed to upskill accelerator managers and incubators within UNDP’s timbuktoo initiative, who are committed to advancing innovation across Africa. The three programs aim to support continued ecosystem development while broadening opportunities to invest in African founders across the continent.

500 Global’s Africa leadership aims to work with founders, investors, and institutions like UNDP, to become a more active participant within the African innovation ecosystem.

Together, 500 Global and UNDP hope to provide African founders the insights and expertise to navigate the evolving global landscape and capitalize on opportunities to scale, by providing support, mentorship, as well as their global network of resources.

“At UNDP, we believe that Africa’s future lies in the ingenuity of its people. Through this partnership with 500 Global, we are not just investing in startups, we are investing in innovators driving Africa’s sustainable transformation. By equipping entrepreneurs with the tools, networks, and mentorship they need, we are building a resilient ecosystem that will power inclusive growth and deliver on the promise of the Sustainable Development Goals”, said Ahunna Eziakonwa, Assistant UN Secretary General and Director of UNDP Regional Bureau for Africa.

Applications are open for all three programs.  Founders can learn more and apply through the Pre-Acceleration Academy and Sustainable Innovation Accelerator Program pages.           

Ajua, a Customer Experience (CX) platform has acquired Rate My Service (RMS), a Kenyan Customer and Employee Experience platform, in a consolidation move.

The terms of the deal were not disclosed but the acquisition deepens Ajua’s expertise, reinforcing its local relevance, and accelerates its vision to become the largest Experience Management platform across Africa.

According to Nyasha Mutsekwa, Ajua CEO, “This acquisition is a game-changer for the African CX landscape. Bringing RMS into the Ajua family not only deepens our local expertise but also significantly expands our collective reach. It’s a powerful step towards realizing our goal of building the biggest and most robust CX platform in Africa, empowering businesses to truly understand and serve their customers with unparalleled precision.”

The acquisition and integration of Rate My Service into Ajua will combine two of Africa’s prominent CX platforms into one to expand reach and enhance capabilities across the continent. With the integration, Ajua is poised to deliver even more impactful and tailored CX strategies to businesses.

Ajua is present in Africa and the Caribbean and offers a comprehensive suite of CX solutions that enable businesses to gather, analyze and act on customer feedback. Built on Amazon Web Services (AWS), Ajua and RMS provide unparalleled scalability, security and reliability. Furthermore, Ajua and RMS boast direct integration with Google and Meta (including WhatsApp), offering seamless and accessible customer interaction channels.

The addition of Rate My Service’s specialized solutions further strengthens Ajua’s ability to provide a holistic and highly localized CX offering, catering to the diverse needs of businesses across various sectors. This strategic move underscores Ajua’s commitment to driving innovation and setting the standard for customer-centric growth in the African market.

Rate My Service is a Kenyan-based Customer and Employee Experience platform focused on providing innovative feedback solutions to businesses. Known for its strong local market understanding, RMS helps companies to drive business growth through a deeper understanding of its customers and employees.

NBA Africa has announced the second edition of the startup accelerator program, the second to what was launched last year.

NBA Africa aims to support the continent’s technology ecosystem and the next generation of African entrepreneurs. The NBA Africa Triple-Double Accelerator awards financial support and mentorship to early-stage African startup companies that develop solutions in the sport and creative industries.

According to NBA Africa CEO Clare Akamanzi, “Last year’s inaugural Triple-Double Accelerator program showed how much talent, passion and creativity there is among African entrepreneurs who are shaping the future of the continent’s rapidly growing sport and entertainment industries. We look forward to reviewing this year’s submissions and to helping another round of promising startups take the next step in their development.”

Once again, the accelerator will be operated by ALX Ventures, a tech incubator that provides the continent’s tech leaders with access to the skills and tools to launch and scale their startups.

Until Friday, Aug. 29, startups can apply to participate at ​ https://tripledoubleaccelerator.nba.com ​ after which the submissions will be narrowed down to a top 10.

The shortlisted startups will then participate in a 10-week mentorship program where they will be paired with mentors comprised of NBA Africa, ServiceNow and ALX leadership, as well as other corporate stakeholders, who will provide guidance to the companies with a focus on product development, business growth and go-to-market strategy. ​

The startups will then pitch their products to international industry leaders at the program’s second Demo Day in December, where the top five prize-winning companies will be selected to receive financial support and mentorship.

Last year, more than 700 early-stage African startups applied to the program. Ten finalists were then selected to pitch their products to a panel of international industry leaders at the program’s first Demo Day at the NBA headquarters in New York City, after which four prize-winning companies – Festival Coins (Nigeria), Salubata (Nigeria), HustleSasa (Kenya) and UBR VR (Egypt) – were awarded financial support and mentorship.

Additional information about the Demo Day in December will be announced at a later date.

Street Wallet, a South African fintech transforming how informal traders get paid, has secured $350,000 (R6.2 million) in fresh funding at a $2 million (R35.5 million) valuation.

Street Wallet says the investment will help it fuel it’s nationwide expansion and boost its sales force to reach more underserved communities.

“This investment is a strong vote of confidence in our vision,” said Kosta Scholiadis, Founder and CEO of Street Wallet. “We’re building a financial ecosystem that works for everyone, not just those with access to traditional banking. With this capital, we can grow our sales network, forge strategic partnerships, and ensure more traders can take part in South Africa’s digital future.”

South Africa is home to over one million informal traders and street vendors, many of whom remain excluded from the digital economy. With cash usage declining and mobile payments on the rise, these entrepreneurs risk losing sales due to the lack of access to bank accounts, smartphones, or reliable internet.

Street Wallet solves this by offering a bank-free, data-free payment solution. Each trader receives a lanyard card with a unique QR code, enabling customers to pay via Apple Pay, Zapper, SnapScan, or other scan-to-pay apps. Vendors get instant SMS confirmations, and daily earnings are converted into Standard Bank Instant Money Vouchers—redeemable at ATMs or participating retailers by the next morning.

The funding round was led by Stephen Britto, who joined as CFO in 2024. Britto previously served as CFO of UK startup Syft, where he played a pivotal role in its £78 million acquisition by Indeed in 2019.

Street Wallet’s next phase will focus on expanding its trader network, partnering with payment providers and mobile operators, and ensuring smooth, secure transactions for vendors across the country.

“We believe technology should level the playing field,” Scholiadis added. “From township shop owners to street hawkers and car guards—everyone should have the tools to thrive in the digital economy.”

Alaan, a UAE-based corporate spend management platform, has raised $48 million in a Series A funding round, to expand across the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region.

Founded in 2022, Alaan is a fintech platform giving businesses across the MENA region with corporate cards and an integrated platform that automates expense management, reconciliation, and payment workflows.

According to Karun Kurien, Co-Founder, Chief Product Officer at Alaa, “We’ve raised a $48 Million Series A. This means a lot. Not because we were chasing it, in fact, we weren’t. We were focused on the product. Focused on making sure what we built actually worked – not just in theory, but in the hands of real finance teams…Today, I’m proud to say that over 1,500 of those teams across the UAE and KSA trust Alaan to run their finance operations.”

With the new funding, the firm will enable deeper expansion across the GCC, particularly in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and accelerate development of its AI-powered finance operations suite.

The Series A round was led by Peak XV Partners (formerly Sequoia Capital India & SEA), with participation from international and regional investors. The capital includes a mix of primary and secondary investment.

Since its inception, Alaan has processed over 2.5 million transactions and is used by more than 1,500 finance teams in the region. The company reports significant growth in its recently launched Saudi Arabia operations, with transaction volumes doubling month over month for the past six months.

The new capital will support further product innovation focused on AI agents for finance teams. These agents are designed to reduce time spent on manual tasks such as receipt matching, reconciliation, and VAT data extraction. The company aims to expand its offering into a full-stack finance operations platform, helping businesses gain greater control and visibility over their spending.

Alaan also plans to strengthen its UAE base while scaling teams across sales, customer success, and compliance to support regional clients.