Kenyan low-cost ISP Poa Internet secures $28 million in round led by AfDB-backed Africa50, plans to link region with cheap, limit-free connectivity

In 2020, Africa50, an infrastructure financier backed by the Africa Development Bank (AfDB) Group and a good number of African governments, hosted an innovation challenge that sought affordable and reliable solutions for last-mile internet connectivity across the continent. A proposal by Poa Intern

Hero MotoCorp, Engine No. 1 join Gogoro’s PIPE, bringing it up to $285M

Gogoro, the Taiwanese company best known for its electric smartscooters and swappable battery infrastructure, has just added current strategic partner Hero MotoCorp, activist and impact investment firm Engine No. 1 and another investor to its PIPE investment, bringing the total funding to $285 mill

Spendesk is the fifth French startup to reach unicorn status this month

Fintech startup Spendesk is announcing that it has raised an extension to its Series C round. Tiger Global is investing $114 million (€100 million) in the startup. Following today's funding round, the company says that is has reached a valuation of more than $1.14 billion (more than €1 bill

Crypto.com expands venture arm to $500 million to back early-stage web3 startups

Crypto.com, a popular cryptocurrency exchange, has extended its venture arm’s fund size to $500 million as it looks to more aggressively back early-stage startups to help the nascent ecosystem grow, following similar moves by rivals Binance, Coinbase and FTX. The broadening of Crypto.com Capi

Focused on smaller cities, Vietnamese social commerce startup Mio raises $8M Series A

Mio, the Vietnamese social commerce platform, has raised an $8 million Series A, less than a year after announcing its seed round. The funding was led by Jungle Ventures, with participation from Patamar Capital and Oliver Jung. Existing investors investors GGV, Venturra, Hustle Fund, iSEED SEA and

India’s Arya raises $60 million to provide farmers with finance and post-harvest services

Indian agritech startup Arya, which reaches hundreds of thousands of farmers in the South Asian market and helps them store and sell their produce and secure credit, has raised $60 million in a new financing round as it enters a new phase of growth. Asia Impact SA, Lightrock India and Quona Capital

Space startup Wyvern raises $4.5M and joins YC’s latest cohort

A Canadian startup working at the cutting edge of satellite imaging has raised $4.5 million across a combination of a $2.25 million seed round, and $2.25 million from a combined pre-seed and government funding. Wyvern, which is working specifically on hyperspectral imaging (imaging that captures li

Rebundle raises $1.4M for plant-based hair extensions

This morning Rebundle, a hair-focused startup based in St. Louis, announced that it has raised $1.4 million in a pre-seed round. M25, a venture firm with a geographic focus on the Midwest, led the funding event. Prior to its pre-seed round, Rebundle had raised what CEO and co-founder Ciara Imani Ma

Turkey’s Spyke raises $55M in a seed round to bring a social twist to casual mobile games

Istanbul has become a city to watch when it comes to casual gaming startups, boosted by the likes of Peak (acquired by Zynga for $1.8 billion) and Dream (valued at $1 billion in a funding round last year). Now, a new startup is announcing a major round of funding to make its own mark on the space.

INDmoney raises $75M for its super finance app in India

Indian startup INDmoney has raised $75 million in a new round as it attempts to build a super finance app to become a “one-stop shop” for people's investments and expenses, a top executive said on Monday. Tiger Global, Steadview Capital, and Dragoneer co-led the startup's $75 mi

Animoca, Galaxy Interactive and Polygon back gaming firm nCore in web3 push

nCore Games has raised $10 million in a new financing round as the top Indian gaming firm gears up to launch web3 offerings, its top executives said Monday. Animoca Brands and Galaxy Interactive, two high-profile investors in the crypto space, led the funding. Polygon, a popular layer 2 Ethereum sc

Ghanaian fintech Float raises $17M seed to power cash flow for commerce in Africa

"" data-block="true" data-editor="f7ao" data-offset-key="bfq2-0-0"> "" data-offset-key="bfq2-0-0"> Cash flow is a major pain point for small businesses in Africa. Long payment cycles, which can take 30-90 days after services or products have been rendered, and little or no capital, of which research

Ugandan fintech Asaak raises $30million to support acquisition of motorbikes, smartphones by taxi operators

Asaak, a Ugandan asset financing startup, has secured $30 million in pre-Series A equity and debt funding. The round saw the participation of new and existing investors including Resolute Ventures, Social Capital, HOF Capital, Founders Factory Africa, End Poverty Make Trillions, Decentralized VC an

Social robotics company Furhat buys Sphero spin-out company Misty Robotics

Misty has had a hell of a journey of it. After raising $11.5 million from Foundry and Venrock, then crowdfunding its personal robot, the company hit a series of challenges. Today, Swedish social robotics company Furhat Robotics is offering the beleaguered startup a gentle landing in what the Swedis