In terms of venture capital, 2025 was a successful year for African startups. The continent’s startups have raised a total of $3.2 billion.
- In terms of venture capital, 2025 was a successful year for African startups. The continent’s startups have raised a total...
- Data from Africa: The Big Deal, an analytics firm for venture capital in Africa, supports this.
- This boost is particularly welcome after two consecutive years of decline (-35 per cent YoY in 2023, -25 per cent...
- This marked the start of the second quarter.
Keep reading for the full breakdown on $3.2 billion — everything you need to know is covered below.
Data from Africa: The Big Deal, an analytics firm for venture capital in Africa, supports this.
Over the past three years, the continent has not experienced a magnitude this high. The $3.2 billion raised represents a notable 45.4 per cent increase compared to the $2.2 billion raised in 2024.
Additionally, it represents a 6.6 per cent rise over the $3 billion raised in 2023 and marks the first year-on-year improvement after two consecutive declines.
“Firstly, start-ups in Africa raised $3.2 billion in 2025 (exc. exits). This is an impressive number in itself, of course, but it also represents substantial YoY growth compared to 2024: +40 per cent. This boost is particularly welcome after two consecutive years of decline (-35 per cent YoY in 2023, -25 per cent YoY in 2024). The year ended at fundraising levels not only higher than 2024 but also 2023,” part of the report reads.
Analysts predicted that the late-2024 venture funding rally, which saw several significant deals at the end of the year, would continue into 2025. As a result, startups raised $289 million, making January the second-best January since 2019, surpassed only by January 2022, when African startups raised over $400 million. February saw a slight decline, with startups raising $119 million, the least since 2019. March saw an even steeper decline, raising only $50 million, making it one of the slowest months since late 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic was in full swing. This number brings the total funding raised in the first quarter of 2025 to $458 million.
Q2 2025
Startups raised $343 million in April 2025, the second-best April on record for funding, surpassing only April 2022, which occurred during the funding boom across the continent. This marked the start of the second quarter.
With startups raising $254 million in the first five months of the year, surpassing $1 billion in total, the remarkable run would continue in May.
In June, the company raised $365 million, its best month as a startup, to close out the quarter. This increases the total for the first half of 2025 to $1.42 billion and the second quarter to $962 million, more than twice the first quarter.
Q3 quarter
The third quarter began with the goal of surpassing July’s total of $550 million. In what would turn out to be the best month of 2025 and, in fact, the best month of the preceding two years, this surpasses the entire first quarter.
Additionally, it brought the year’s total close to $2 billion ($1.97 billion).
In August 2025, startups across the continent raised $93 million, making it the second-slowest funding month of 2025, after March, which would cause a sharp decline across the entire funding space. With a total of $140 million raised in September, the numbers would somewhat improve.
As a result, the third quarter ended with $783 million raised, effectively surpassing 2024 by the end of the quarter and bringing the year-to-date total to $2.20 billion.
Q4 2025
In October 2025, startups across the continent raised $442 million, starting the fourth quarter in a manner nearly as impressive as the third. After startups raised $550 million in July, October is now the second-most-funded month of the year.
Similar to the previous quarter, November saw a drop in fundraising to $162 million after October’s remarkable total.
Based on these, the quarter would see a considerable uptick in December, with startups raising $393 million before the quarter ended, bringing the total to $997 million, making it the most-funded quarter of the year.
| JANUARY | FEBRUARY | MARCH | Q1 TOTAL |
| $289,000,000 | $119,000,000 | $50,000,000 | $458,000,000 |
| APRIL | MAY | JUNE | Q2 TOTAL |
| $343,000,000 | $254,000,000 | $365,000,000 | $962,000,000 |
| H1 TOTAL | $1,420,000,000 | ||
| JULY | AUGUST | SEPTEMBER | Q3 TOTAL |
| $550,000,000 | $93,000,000 | $140,000,000 | $783,000,000 |
| OCTOBER | NOVEMBER | DECEMBER | Q4 TOTAL |
| $442,000,000 | $162,000,000 | $393,000,000 | $997,000,000 |
| H2 TOTAL | $1,780,000,000 | 2025 TOTAL | $3,200,000,000 |
The remarkable 2025 figures are the result of investments made in startups. The year under review saw almost 500 startups on the continent raise at least $100,000. At least $1 million was raised by 215 of these. Compared to 2024, when 193 startups raised $1 million or more, this figure represents an increase of 11.4 per cent.
A remarkable 69 African startups raised $10 million or more, making them part of the more exclusive group. This is the second-highest number since 2019, only surpassed by 2022’s 97, and 72.5 per cent higher than 40 in 2024.
The eight startups that announced more than $100 million in funding are even more exclusive. This is a significant number compared to four in 2023 and five in 2024.