African Startups Secured $26.9 Million Raised On VC4Africa for the year 2014
Africa’s leading startup investor and networking platform, VC4Africa tabled a report that shows that collectively, African startups raised $26.9 million in funding for the year 2014. A significant increase from last year’s $12 million; the report goes further to show that each startup got on average an increased funding from $130K in 2013 to $200K in 2014.
“We hope the research shows there are a growing number of businesses that are successfully growing their operations over time and adding much-needed jobs to the African marketplace. This is a key message if we are going to get more capital involved in this space.” – Ben White, a Co-Founder of VC4Africa.
The better part of these funds went to the technology industry. Other industries that saw considerable amount of investments being channeled towards them are Agriculture, Health, Finance, and Energy sectors. The report also revealed that startups that joined a sector event, an incubator or an accelerator secured on average, 23% more funding compared to startups that did not participate in such programs.
The research also shows that out of the 600 investors that make up the VC4Africa community, 82 percent channeled their investments towards African ventures. Africans living in the diaspora were also not left out; they are said to becoming increasingly interested in investing in startups emerging back in their home countries.