African start-ups announced US$183 million in funding in October 2026 across 34 rounds of US$100,000 or more, according to Africa: The Big Deal. The total excludes exits. It is 24% below September’s US$241 million, 29% below the 12-month monthly average of US$259 million, and 58% below October 2025’s US$435 million.

This is a monthly data read, not a report on a single deal. It uses the Big Deal’s basis: start-ups announcing rounds of US$100,000 or more during the month, with exits left out. The newsletter published the figures on 5 November.

Equity led, debt followed

According to the Big Deal, equity made up US$110 million (60%) of the total, debt US$71 million (39%) and grants about US$2 million. Climate tech start-ups took 55% of the money.

The two largest rounds, ABA Life in Morocco and East Africa Foods in Tanzania, both came from outside the Big Four markets of Egypt, Kenya, Nigeria and South Africa. The Big Deal classes both as equity. For East Africa Foods, the company’s financing release describes only part of the round as equity, as explained below.

Morocco and Tanzania

ABA Life, the health division of Casablanca-based ABA Technology, announced a 400 million dirham investment agreement with Admaius Capital Partners. The Big Deal puts the amount at US$40 million. ABA Technology says completion remains subject to customary closing conditions and authorisation from Morocco’s Competition Council. Its announcement does not state the instrument or the stake. The round is therefore announced, not closed, although the Big Deal describes it as raised.

East Africa Foods, a Tanzanian agritech company that PIDG says is expanding into Kenya, appears in the Big Deal’s data as a US$40 million Series B. A PIDG release dated 7 October describes a US$26 million Series B equity round, led by PIDG through its InfraCo unit with Oikocredit and FMO. That equity completes a broader raise of about US$40 million, which includes existing shareholders and debt from the Schmidt Family Foundation. The Big Deal’s US$40 million label matches the broader raise rather than the equity round. The text we could read does not say how the Big Deal allocated the amount between its equity and debt totals.

Where the money went

Nigeria led by country, with US$42 million across nine start-ups, mostly energy and mobility debt. Morocco and Tanzania each recorded US$40 million, ahead of Egypt at US$19 million and Senegal at US$13 million.

Debt deals followed the two large rounds: a US$17 million bond issue by Egypt’s ValU, US$13 million for Senegal’s Afreenergy Solar, an US$11 million Finnfund loan to Bisedge and a US$10 million EBRD loan to Beacon Power Services. The last two are Nigerian companies.

The Big Four accounted for 46% of the month’s funding, their lowest monthly share since November 2022. They still accounted for 26 of the 34 deals.

Year to date

January to October totalled US$2.4 billion, 12% below the same period of 2025. Equity rose 5% to US$1.6 billion, while debt fell 33% to US$740 million.

Only 343 start-ups raised US$100,000 or more in the first ten months, against 438 a year earlier, a 22% fall. The Big Deal calls this the lowest January-to-October count since it began tracking the threshold in 2021. The number of named active investors fell 16% to more than 370.

Matching 2025’s US$3.2 billion would need US$814 million in November and December, against US$496 million in the same two months of 2025. The Big Deal calls that unlikely. Equity is closer: another US$338 million would take 2026 equity past 2025’s US$1.9 billion.

What the total leaves out

Exits are not in the US$183 million. The Big Deal lists four October exits: MNT-Halan’s initial public offering on the Egyptian Exchange, HealthPay’s acquisition of PeacePay, GiG Software’s completion of its acquisition of 888Africa and the sale of LekkeSlaap to South African investors.

Sources

TopicsAfrican Startups Funding Monthly Data

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