A new report by Africa: The Big Deal, a platform that tracks startup funding across the continent, has revealed that Nigeria's financial technology, fintech, sector, alongside four other leading startups, dominated funding rounds in the first half of 2025.
Collectively, the five startups raised $640 million, representing 45 percent of total startup investments on the continent during the period. The report indicates renewed investor confidence in Africa's tech space, especially fintech, following a slowdown over the past two years.
This insight was shared during a LinkedIn Live session by the Head of Mobile for Development, M4D, at the GSMA, Max Cuvellier Giacomelli.
Among the top five fintech deals were: Wave Money, a mobile money platform based in Senegal which secured a $137 million debt deal. It is known for providing simple and affordable financial services.
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Then in Egypt, Bokra, a wealth management and investment platform that enables individuals to save and invest in a Sharia-compliant way. raised a $59 million sukuk. Bokra is a wealth management and investment platform that enables individuals to save and invest in a Sharia-compliant way.
Also, Stitch, a South Africa-based fintech infrastructure company, which offers APIs that enable businesses to build and scale financial products across Africa completed a $55 million Series B funding round. Its services include APIs for payments, account linking, and financial data access, which help companies' process transactions, verify customer accounts, and build financial applications more efficiently.
Nigerian cross-border payments platform, LemFi, formerly known as Lemonade Finance, a platform which allows immigrants users to send and receive money instantly between countries at competitive rates raised a $53 million Series B. The platform also offers multi-currency wallets, local bank account features, and international remittance services, primarily targeting the African diaspora.
Finally, MNT-Halan's Tasaheel in Egypt secured a $50 million bond issue. MNT-Halan is a digital ecosystem that provides a variety of services, including lending, payments, and e-commerce. Its subsidiary, Tasaheel, focuses on offering microfinance and small business loans to underserved and unbanked populations. The funds from the bond issuance will be used to finance further lending activities.
Fintech sustains lead
Fintech maintained its dominance in the ecosystem, attracting 51 percent of total startup funding over the past 12 months, nearing its all-time high.
Though it accounted for only 27 percent of all deals in H1 2025, fintech secured 46 percent of transactions above $10 million.
Average deal sizes in fintech remained significantly larger, with a $10 million average and $1.7 million median, compared to $4.8 million and $0.5 million, respectively, for non-fintech sectors.
Other sector leaders
Outside fintech, the energy sector came second, attracting $220 million, 20 percent, largely due to major Kenyan deals including: Burn Manufacturing, $85 million and PowerGen, $55 million.
These investments further cement Kenya's dominance in energy innovation, which has attracted 50 percent of all sectoral funding since 2019, compared to just six percent in Nigeria.
Healthcare followed with $160 million 11 percent, largely driven by hearX's $100 million merger with US-based Eargo in South Africa.
Logistics/transportation attracted $116 million, while Egypt's Nawy led the proptech sector with $75 million.
'Climate tech' which spans energy, agriculture, logistics, and fintech secured $300 million 21 percent of total funding, reflecting growing interest in sustainable innovation, albeit slightly lower than in 2024.
Notably, early-stage innovations also emerged from outside Africa's "Big Four" markets. These include Tunisia's Kumulus Water, $3.5 million and Ghana's Kofa $8.1 million pre-Series A for battery swapping.
With fintech resurging and climate-aligned sectors gaining momentum, Africa's tech ecosystem continues to show resilience and evolving investor appetite across diverse industries.
Commenting on the fintech boom, Group Managing Director, Processing-Africa at Network International, Dr. Reda Helal emphasized that the continent has shifted from simply driving financial inclusion to actual adoption, particularly in Nigeria.
Speaking on the national television, he cited Nigeria's airport digitisation as a symbol of the broader payment transformation underway.
Helal said: "You no longer need a landing card, just a QR code. That's digital transformation. In fintech, it's not just about infrastructure anymore. Today, we are seeing true adoption.
"Nigeria's financial inclusion has grown from 68 percent to over 74 percent in just two years. And digital payments have reached N1 quadrillion in transaction volume, an 80 percent year-on-year increase."
Dr. Helal revealed that Network International now partners with the four largest mobile network operators, MNOs, in Africa, which collectively manage over 380 million mobile wallets.
"What took the banking sector decades, telcos have nearly matched in a few years. These partnerships are closing the gap between the unbanked and the digital economy."
While fintech growth is notable, Helal acknowledged persistent infrastructure gaps, particularly in rural areas.
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He said: "Internet, electricity, and device access are still hurdles. But we're addressing them by localising solutions for everyone, from the street vendor to the high-street retailer."
Network International now supports over 250 banks, fintechs, telcos, and governments across 50 markets, with 55 clients in Africa alone.
"In Nigeria, we support 22 of 28 banks. Our omnichannel infrastructure, web, mobile, physical, is designed to make adoption seamless. Even a housewife in Accra or a vendor in Lusaka can now receive digital payments without needing a physical PoS."
AI-Powered fraud prevention
Helal also stressed the importance of trust and security in scaling fintech adoption. He revealed that Nigeria lost 5500 billion to fraud in 2024.
He "We've deployed real-time, AI-driven fraud detection systems that predict fraud before it happens, moving away from reactive models. This builds confidence in digital payments."
Helal urged investors to look past short-term risks and focus on Africa's long-term potential:
"Africa has the world's youngest population, 1.4 billion people across more than 50 markets. While mature regions are plateauing, Africa is just beginning. The future isn't coming, it's already here."
