44 African startups raised $102 million in July with only 25% coming via equity

Venture funding into the African startup ecosystem witnessed a slump in July as 44 startups across the continent raised $102 million in the month. July’s total represents an 80.1 per cent decline from the $515 million raised in the previous month of June and 81.5 per cent from July of 2025.

It is also 60 per cent below the previous 12-month average of $258 million.

July represents the slowest month of 2026 so far, and indeed the slowest month over the last 16 months, since March 2025, when startups raised only $50 million. It brings the second half of the year to a slow start after witnessing a total of $1.45 billion raised in the first half.

So far, from January to July 2026, African start-ups have now raised $1.46b, well below the $2 billion raised in the same period in 2025, about a 27 per cent drop year-on-year.

While July’s total tally may have been low, activity has indeed been quite high, with 44 startups raising $100,000 and above. This is exactly in line with the previous 12-month average. Despite this, the total number of startups that raised major funding in 2026 has been dwindling, with only 241 unique ventures raising $100,000 or more so far this year.

This is 20 per cent below the total number of startups that raised between January and July 2025 (302). Indeed, it was the lowest in the same period recorded over the last three years, with 286 in 2024 and 300 in 2023.

The number of investors investing in the continent has also declined, with about 256 unique active investors recorded so far this year. This is down from 328 recorded in the first seven months of 2025, representing nearly a 22 per cent decrease.

So far, 2026 has recorded a double-digit decline across almost all key indicators.

Read also: African startups raised $1.4 billion in H1 2026 off a $515 million windfall in June

Yet, debt dominates July 2026 venture funding

Another worrying bit of July’s number is the debt-heavy mix. Of the $102 million raised, only $25.5 million came in the form of equity, representing just 25 per cent of the total. A decline in equity funding is not good because it depicts a decline in investor trust in the ecosystem.

Conversely, 74 per cent of the total, about $75.48 million, came in the form of debt, depicting the kind of assurances investors want behind their money.

The balance of about $102,000 was from grants.

With July’s abysmal tally, year-to-date equity funding now stands at $921 million, representing a 9 per cent drop from about $1.12 billion raised during the same period in 2025. Debt funding also now stands at $529 million, about a 44 per cent drop from the $941 million raised in the same period last year.

The dominance of debt is better expressed by the fact that the largest funding rounds recorded during the month all came in as debt raises.

M-Kopa raised $30 million in a senior-debt financing package from the Dutch development bank FMO. The financing will enable M-KOPA Kenya Mobility, the electric-motorbike subsidiary of the fintech company, to support its growing portfolio of electric-motorbike and battery-financing receivables in Kenya.

Aside from M-Kopa, South African AI-powered lender Bridgement, also raised $20 million in debt from RMB, an existing funding partner and Standard Bank. Zambian clean energy startup Biolite also raised $11 million in debt, as did Nesa Power, which raised $9 million.