Nigerian startups raised $11.3 million across nine deals in September, according to Nairametrics' monthly tracker. A month earlier, the same tracker recorded $364.1 million across 20 startups. That is a drop of about 97% in a single month.
One deal made August
The August figure was never a normal month. Mobility fintech Moove raised a $250 million Series C, backed by Mubadala, Woven Capital and Ion Pacific, at a valuation of about $2.1 billion. That deal alone was close to 69% of Nigeria's August total. Jumia ($50 million), Yellow Card ($40 million) and Terra Industries ($18 million) added most of the rest.
Take those large rounds out and Nigeria's monthly numbers look very different. In July, Nigerian startups raised only $4.9 million from six deals. September's $11.3 million is closer to that baseline than August was.
Where the money went instead
September was a quieter month for the whole continent: African startups raised $260.3 million, down about 40% from August. But other markets held up far better than Nigeria:
- Egypt: $74.6 million across nine deals, led by Paymob's $35 million round and Synapse Analytics' $13 million Series A.
- Kenya: $54.2 million across nine deals, including Arc Ride ($33.3 million) and debt for SunCulture and PowerGen.
- Nigeria: $11.3 million, just 4.3% of the continental total, despite matching Egypt and Kenya on deal count.
Nigeria did as many deals as its rivals. The difference is size. Its September rounds were small, early-stage cheques, while Egypt and Kenya landed growth rounds and debt facilities.
What it tells us
Month-to-month funding numbers in Africa are lumpy. A single mega-round can make a country look like it is booming, and its absence can make the next month look like a collapse. The more useful signal is the run rate of mid-sized deals, the $5 million to $30 million rounds that move startups from traction to scale. On that measure, Nigeria's September was weak.
For founders in Lagos, the takeaway is not panic. Capital is available, but it is concentrated in a few large, later-stage bets, and mid-stage rounds are going elsewhere on the continent for now.
