12 African startups selected for the first ever Techstars Accelerator Program in Lagos
ARM Labs Lagos Techstars Accelerator, a Lagos-based program to build early-stage African fintech and proptech startups has announced its inaugural class. The cohort is made up of 10 Nigerian and 2 Kenyan startups, with 50% female CEOs.
The founders officially began the 13-week program on the 5th of December 2022, and have had engagements with over 100 mentors and speakers including Tunde Kehinde - Co-founder & CEO, Lidya, Bode Abifarin- COO, Flutterwave, Fara Ashiru Jituboh - Founder & CEO, Okra and Amandine Lobelle - COO, Paystack.
“Since the announcement that Techstars was coming to Lagos, there has been great anticipation about the selection of the inaugural cohort. After a competitive application process, we have chosen entrepreneurs who have the capacity to be exceptional founders, startups that have the potential to be industry leaders, and a cohort that is collectively capable of bringing innovation and change to Africa and the world,” said Techstars’ Managing Director, Oyin Solebo.
“The excitement of supporting an accelerator program lies in the potential to ignite the spark of innovation and watch as it transforms into a blazing fire of impact and change. As ARM partners with Techstars to launch an accelerator program that provides funding, mentorship, and access to networks and resources, our goal is to unearth the next set of Unicorns out of Africa,” said Ina Alogwu, Group Director, Digital Transformation, ARMHoldCo.
The accelerator’s investment of up to $120,000 in each startup, as well as training and a vast investor network will be significant in the growth and longevity of the cohorts. Demo day is set for the 16th of March 2023.
The selected startups include Kenyan startups alphabloQ, a real estate investment platform and Cladfy, which provides microfinance lenders with credit profiling, digitised loan management, and access to affordable, reliable financing.
Others include peppa.io which is making it safer to buy on social platforms for Africans through the use of payment protection; CDcare which s making it easy for Africans to own gadgets, appliances, cars and more at zero interest, through smart installment plans; Flick, which enables users to connect multiple bank accounts and pay directly from one source; Keble, which enables Africans at home and abroad to purchase fractional shares of global real estate; and Keza, which enables people to buy new and pre-owned smartphones on a flexible payment plan.
Also in the list from Nigeria are Salad, which provides employees with access to financial services and benefits beyond their monthly paycheck; Sidebrief, which simplifies the process of starting and scaling a business across borders; Towntalk, which provides shippers with real-time location and behavioural analytics, vehicle tracking, and access to insurance providers; Vittas, a digital lender for healthcare providers; and Oystr Finance, which provides lenders with an infrastructure to help them launch low-risk micro-loan products.
