Nigeria’s startup equity funding fell to $191 million in 2025 from $300 million in 2024 as investors chose destinations with clearer regulatory environment and startups with better clarity.
South Africa continued to top Africa’s startup equity funding, outpacing traditional powerhouses such as Nigeria and Egypt with a record $484 million raised in 2025, according to the latest Africa: The Big Deal report.
For the third consecutive year, South Africa has dominated the continent’s equity investment landscape, accounting for 30 percent of all equity funding raised by African startups between January and October 2025.
The figure not only surpasses its performance in 2023 and 2024 but also positions the country to exceed its 2022 high of $484 million before year-end.
Since The Big Deal began tracking startup investment data in 2019, South Africa has steadily climbed the rankings among Africa’s ‘Big Four’ startup ecosystems—Nigeria, Egypt, Kenya, and South Africa.
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From just $80 million in 2019, the country’s total annual startup funding soared to $869 million during the 2021 investment boom, before stabilising at around $400 million annually in subsequent years.
The report notes that 90 percent of all South African startup capital since 2019 has been raised through equity deals, compared with 88 percent for Nigeria, 76 percent for Egypt, and 55 percent for Kenya.
“This equity concentration gives South Africa a fundamentally stronger foundation for long-term value creation,” the report observed, highlighting investor confidence in South African startups’ governance and market maturity.
Some of 2025’s biggest equity rounds included deals above $20 million involving hearX, Stitch, Naked, Wetility, Enko Education, Ctrack, and Paymenow. Collectively, these ventures have driven a resurgence in venture activity, particularly in healthtech, deeptech, and telecom sectors where South Africa maintains a commanding lead.
The country also leads the continent in startup exits, with 56 successful acquisitions tracked since 2019, more than Egypt (48), Nigeria (34), and Kenya (24). Recent highlights include Nedbank’s $93 million acquisition of iKhokha and Lesaka’s $61 million purchase of Bank Zero, both completed in 2025.
Sector-wise, South Africa ranks first in healthcare, telecom, media & entertainment, and deeptech, while holding second place in fintech, having raised $1.9 billion since 2019 compared to Nigeria’s $2.8 billion.
“Geography, in other words, is now shaping Africa’s venture map. Nigeria may have the largest market and the deepest founder pool, but investors don’t fund size alone. They fund confidence, policy clarity, and momentum — three things Kenya and South Africa are projecting more effectively right now,” said Medium, a startup platform.
