Market Update: September 9, 2022 - Nexford University raises $8m for edtech expansion

Nexford University raises $8m to scale its edtech services

Highlights

• Nexford University has raised $8 million in a Series A round co-led by New Markets Venture Partners and Learn Capital, two US edtech venture capital firms that have backed Pathstream, Udemy, and Coursera.
• The tech-enabled startup, launched by Fadl Al Tarzi in 2019, provides learners in Africa with a fully online US-accredited higher education and lets them study at their own pace.
• This funding comes after a $10.8 million pre-Series A round Nexford closed in June 2021 and, with it, plans to enter new markets, broaden the company’s academic offerings, including career pathway programs, and enhance its technology infrastructure.

Source: TechCrunch

Our Takeaway

As the traditional university experience hasn’t changed in many years, edtechs like Nexford are pioneering a paradigm shift in higher education that puts learners first. This is even more crucial in the post-Covid era, where nearly all face-to-face interactions in different fields, from education and grocery shopping to events and work, are moving online, even in Africa. This development bodes well for the continent, where the average literacy rate is estimated at 70%, and access to higher education lags behind other parts of the world. 

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Nigerian crypto startup Bitmama bags $2m for expansion

Highlights

• Africa-focused crypto startup Bitmama has raised a pre-seed extension of $1.65 million, adding to the $350,000 it received last October, closing the round at $2 million.
• The US and Nigeria-based company, which has built a distributed remote team across Nigeria, Ghana, and Kenya, is working to democratize Africa’s highly fragmented payment system by leveraging blockchain-based solutions.
• The company will use the pre-seed to expand its operational presence, strengthen its team, consolidate its product offerings, and plot market penetration across Africa while rapidly scaling new use cases for cryptocurrency within the continent.

Source: TechCrunch

Our Takeaway

Despite African governments’ mostly hostile stance on cryptocurrencies, Africa is the world’s third fastest-growing crypto market—adoption has increased by over 1,200% since 2020—and is home to a large number of crypto and blockchain startups (from new upstarts in the web3 space such as MARA, Nestcoin, and Jambo to exchanges and remittance platforms like Buycoins, Quidax, Yellow Card, Bitmama, and Busha). These raised $91 million from investors in the first quarter of 2022 alone compared to $127 million they received throughout 2021, highlighting an increasing appeal to funders. 

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60 African startups get backing from Google’s Black Founders Fund

Highlights

• Sixty African startups have been selected for the second cohort of Google for Startups Black Founders Fund (BFF) for Africa, sharing $4 million in funding and support to enable them to scale. 
• Last year, 50 founders were awarded a total of $3 million in equity-free funding, and for the second edition, Google increased its commitment with an additional $1 million in funding, and support 10 more founders.
• Each of the selected startups will receive support via a six-month training program, including access to a network of mentors, and also partake in tailored workshops, support networks, and community-building sessions.

Source: Disrupt Africa

Our Takeaway

Google’s investments in African startups have been through its Google for Startups Accelerator Africa program, the $10 million Black Founders Fund, and the recently launched Africa Investment Fund. The former has so far supported over 80 startups in seed to Series A stages, providing equity-free mentorship and resources while through the $50 Million Africa Fund, Google has backed three startups—Lori Systems, Carry1st, and Safeboda. Along with other US tech giants, Google is ramping up efforts to support more tech startups on the continent, all of which illuminate the continent’s digital potential.