Is Investor Confidence Following the Policy Push?
The early evidence says yes. Nigerian-founded Moove raised $250 million in a Series C round led by Abu Dhabi investors on August 5, at a $2.1 billion valuation, becoming Africa’s newest unicorn. Six Nigerian firms (Zone, Redtech, PalmPay, Moniepoint, PiggyVest and LemFi) were named on the CNBC/Statista 2026 World’s Top Fintech list. MTN Group’s half-year profit rose 21.3%, with Nigeria a driver.
Across Africa, startups raised $1.37 billion in the first half of 2026, with fintech taking 41% and logistics and transport 35%, helped by Spiro’s $327 million raise. A Nigerian company, BFREE, closed a $10 million round. Digital infrastructure is drawing capital too: on September 29 and 30, the first Nigeria Digital Connectivity Investment Forum, organised by the NCC with Swedfund and Ookla, reported that data use rose almost 47% in a year to about 1.6 million terabytes in July 2026, and that telecoms and information services made up 9.72% of the economy in the second quarter.
The Boston Consulting Group offers a caution. Its report “Advancing Africa’s AI and Digital Economy” warned that Africa risks depending too heavily on foreign digital systems, which would hurt growth. Investment alone does not guarantee that value stays in the country.