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“Impact” versus “returns-driven” investing in Africa
2017 was the best year on record for African tech startups in funding terms, with 159 companies from across the continent securing a combined total of US$195 million.
- Categories
- Investing
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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Press release: Common Cents Report: Hacking Human Behavior to Improve Financial Health
Common Cents, a financial research lab at Duke University supported by MetLife Foundation, today unveiled its 2017 Annual Report. The report details behavioral interventions aimed at improving financial health for low- to moderate-income people with more than 27 organizations over the course of 2017, including startups, credit unions, non-profits, and local governments.
- Region
- North America
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More than Money: Changing Financial Services One Startup at a Time
The Financial Solutions Lab – managed by the Center for Financial Services Innovation (CFSI) with founding partner JPMorgan Chase & Co. – is looking for fintech startups and nonprofits to compete in its $3 Million Challenge to help underserved people. Winning organizations will receive a $250,000 investment. The fintech innovators who will rise to the top, writes CFSI's Shannon Austin, are those solving real financial problems faced by real people – often the same problems experienced by the founders themselves.
- Categories
- Finance, Technology
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Online Lending Startup Aye Finance Bags $3.8 Mn From Hinduja Leyland Finance And IntelleGrow
Gurugram-headquartered online lending startup Aye Finance has raised $3.8 Mn (INR 25 Cr) from three investors, including Hinduja Leyland Finance and IntelleGrow, which provides debt finance to growing businesses in the country. The investment, which took place through a securitisation deal, was facilitated by Vivriti Capital.
- Region
- South Asia
- Tags
- startups, venture capital
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Startup venture funding jumped more than 50% in Africa last year to a record high
Across sectors, financial inclusion accounted for 45% of total investment—more than any other sector—with $253 million raised. Partech’s report categorizes off-grid tech, fintech and insurance tech startups under financial inclusion.
- Categories
- Investing
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
- Tags
- startups, venture capital
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What Blocks The Success Runway For Fintech Startups In India?
Despite adequate funding and an unprecedented growth of 135% in just two years, most fintech startups are grappling with inefficiencies in multiple operations. However, with India slowly but surely making the transition towards a cashless economy, access to internet services, and increasing transparency in transactions, the outlook for the future is most certainly robust.
- Categories
- Finance
- Region
- South Asia
- Tags
- fintech, regulations, startups
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Press release: World Tokenomic Forum Launches a Revolutionary Social Enterprise Venture Fund for Blockchain Related Technologies
World Tokenomic Forum is innovating the social enterprise venture fund model with its Sandcastle Social Enterprise Fund focused on early stage, protocol and decentralized application investments for cybersecurity, infrastructure, identity, payments, and social impact companies.
- Categories
- Technology
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The rise and rise of African agri-tech
Agriculture is big business in Africa. The sector employs 65 per cent of the continent’s labour force, and accounts for 32 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP), according to the World Bank.
- Categories
- Agriculture, Technology
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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