Nigerian startups attracted $635 million in funding between January and September 2026, reclaiming their position as Africa’s leading destination for startup investment as fundraising weakened in other major markets across the continent.
Data from Africa: The Big Deal, an African startup funding tracker, reported by Nairametrics on Wednesday, October 21, 2026, showed that Nigeria’s funding increased 157% from the $247 million recorded during the corresponding period of 2025.
The latest figure represents 2.6 times the previous year’s total and marks Nigeria’s strongest January-to-September funding performance since 2022.
However, the recovery was driven substantially by a handful of large transactions, highlighting the concentration of investment among established companies even as more Nigerian startups secured funding.
Four companies, Moove, Flutterwave, Jumia and Yellow Card, raised a combined $440 million during the nine-month period, accounting for approximately 69% of Nigeria’s total.
Moove, a mobility financing company, raised $250 million, while payments technology company Flutterwave secured $100 million. E-commerce platform Jumia attracted $50 million, and cryptocurrency infrastructure company Yellow Card raised $40 million.
According to the figures reported by Nairametrics on October 21, 2026, the remaining $195 million was distributed across other funding transactions.
Despite the concentration of capital, Nigeria also recorded the highest number of startups raising at least $100,000 among African markets tracked during the period.
A total of 77 Nigerian startups secured funding, up from 70 in the first nine months of 2025. This suggests that the country’s improved performance extended beyond its largest fundraising deals, although the total amount raised remained heavily influenced by a small group of companies.
Nigeria accounted for 37% of funding raised by startups operating in individual African countries, excluding pan-African ventures. Africa: The Big Deal’s figures showed that this was the country’s highest share since 2021.
The recovery also contrasted with declines in other major startup markets. Nigerian startups outperformed Kenya and South Africa, where funding fell by 73% and 58%, respectively.
Kenya attracted $201 million during the period, a figure partly affected by the classification of Spiro, which operates extensively in Kenya but is categorised as a pan-African venture in the tracker’s database. Meanwhile, South Africa raised $182 million, and Egypt remained relatively stable, attracting $445 million, according to figures published by BusinessAMLive on October 21, 2026.
The funding rankings also reflected a shift in investor interest towards logistics and transport businesses.
Across Africa, logistics and transport startups raised $780 million between January and September 2026, overtaking fintech, which attracted $760 million. The figures represented 36% and 35% of total startup funding, respectively.
Africa: The Big Deal attributed much of the logistics sector’s performance to major fundraising rounds involving Moove and electric mobility company Spiro, which raised $250 million and $345 million, respectively.
Together, the two companies accounted for $595 million, approximately 76% of the sector’s funding.
Fintech nevertheless remained the leading sector by the number of funded ventures, with 80 startups raising at least $100,000 during the nine-month period.
Nigeria’s latest performance strengthens its position in Africa’s technology investment market. However, the concentration of funding in a few large transactions means that sustained growth will depend partly on whether smaller and emerging businesses can continue attracting capital alongside established startups.
