Lagos–based identity verification startup, Youverify, secures $1m seed funding. 2 other stories and a trivia

This line-up of stories will help you discover the latest happenings around the tech world, today

1. Lagos–based identity verification startup, Youverify, secures $1m seed funding

A Lagos and San Francisco–based identity verification startup, Youverify, has announced securing a $1 million seed funding to expand footprints across Africa.

Founder and CEO, Gbenga Odegbami, confirmed the development in a media release on Tuesday.

The latest fund brings the total fund raised since 2020 to $2.5 million.

Ripples Nigeria had in 2020 reported that Youverify secured a $1.5m round to expand its identity verification venture.

Tech correspondent, Kayode Hamsat, gathered that Orange Digital Ventures (ODV) and LoftyInc Capital, the two investors who co-led its initial seed round, led the extension.

According to Youverify, the round saw participation from Octerra Capital, Plug & Play Venture, Syntax Ventures, HTTP Investors, Afer Group, and Fronesyz Capital.

Founded in 2017 by Gbenga Odegbami and Suru Avoseh, the startup noted that the company will be hiring aggressively as it seeks to expand to 30 other countries.

Tech Trivia: The Windows “BSOD” is associated with what event?
A. Startup
B. Shutdown
C. Sleep
D. System error
Answer: see end of post

2. Kenyan insurtech, Lami Technologies, secures $3.7M seed extension

A 2-year old Kenyan insurtech, Lami Technologies, has secured a $3.7M seed extension led by Harlem Capital.

Read also:African startups to benefit from Seedstars’ $20m investment. 2 other stories and a trivia

CEO, Jihan Abass, confirmed the latest funding in a media release seen by Ripples Nigeria on Tuesday.

Abass, who spoke extensively on the startup, noted that other investors that participated in the round include early-stage VC firm Newtown Partners, Peter Bruce-Clark, Caribou Honig and Jay Weintraub of InsureTech Connect, and senior members from Exotix Advisory.

Lami, which is an end-to-end digital insurance platform, enables companies across sectors to offer insurance products.

“On the technology side, we want to cater to the entire insurance ecosystem. So, it’s not only the digital platforms that want to sell insurance products, but also to help existing players be more efficient in their distribution of products, allowing them to play a role in increasing the insurance penetration level,” Abass explained.

Ripples Nigeria understands that the latest funding adds to the $1.8 million seed funding the insurtech raised last year.

3. Gogetta launches Africa-focused equity-based crowdfunding platform in South Africa

Gogetta has announced launching its equity-based crowdfunding platform for Africans in South Africa.

Co-founder and CEO Jeff Miller, while confirming the launch in a media release on Tuesday said that Gogetta is powered by respected administrators in the small-cap alternative investment space, Grovest.

Miller pointed out that Gogetta has launched in South Africa to support African businesses with growth prospects seeking funding via an innovative crowdfunding platform.

Sthembiso Zwane, co-founder of GoGetta while commenting on the launch said:

“GoGetta is a solution to these funding issues and unlocks the potential of Africa’s entrepreneurs.

“Africa is an exciting growth story for investors and our platform showcases some of the best investment opportunities from across the continent.”

“GoGetta is regulated by the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA), giving investors confidence in our top-notch compliance and governance capability. Africa’s go getters will also benefit from guidance in formalising their businesses with a smarter way to access capital to fund growth while retaining control,” Miller added.

Trivia Answer: System error

Stands for “Blue Screen of Death.” The BSOD is an error message displayed by Windows when a non-recoverable error occurs. The “blue screen” refers to the blue background color that fills the entire screen behind the error message.

By Kayode Hamsat

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