Nigeria loses its top spot to Kenya in Africa’s tech market

“In 2023, the ‘Big Four’ attracted 87% of all the start-up funding in Africa, their largest share since 2019. They were home to 71% (357 out of 500) of the start-ups who raised $100k or more on the continent last year. Given their weight, their ranking pretty much mirrors the regional one, with Nigeria’s story quite different from the others,” the report read in part.

“With just under $800m raised in 2023, Kenya attracted the most funding, 28% of the continent’s total. While it suffered a decline (-25% YoY), its share of Eastern Africa’s funding grew from 86% in 2022 to 91% in 2023. 93 start-ups raised $100k or more during the period (19% of Africa’s total),” the report adds.

Nigeria had the most glaring change, going from $1.2 billion in 2022 to $410 million in 2023, the lowest of the big four, despite having 146 start-ups during the year, the highest of the big four.