TechNigeria: A weekly digest of what went down in Nigeria’s tech space

PayStand, Youverify, Beacon, Procurified, Cera, Epione. These are some of the names that made the headlines in the tech ecosystem this week.

A Lagos-based identity verification startup, Youverify, has secured a $1 million seed funding to expand footprints across Africa.

Also, a Nigerian energy-tech company, Beacon Power Services (BPS), on Friday closed a $2.7 million seed round funding led by Seedstars Africa Ventures.

Let’s get into details.

A Blockchain-enabled B2B payments company, PayStand, during the week, announced the full acquisition of Mexican FinTech, Yaydoo, to open opportunities for the automation of supply chain finance.

The PayStand Chief Executive Officer, Jeremy Almon, confirmed the development in a statement sent to Ripples Nigeria on Friday.

What you should know: Paystand is on a mission to create an open and equitable commercial finance system, starting with a zero-fee network for B2B payments.

A Nigerian energy-tech company, Beacon Power Services (BPS), on Friday closed a $2.7 million seed round funding led by Seedstars Africa Ventures.

The founder and CEO, Bimbola Adisa, said in a statement that Persistent Energy, Kepple Africa Ventures, Factor[e,] and Oridun Capital Management participated in the seed round.

What you should know: With a goal to improve the quality and duration of electricity supplied to Africa’s cities, BPS creates smart grids across the continent and uses data to reduce the considerable inefficiencies in the electricity distribution systems.

A United Arab Emirates-based construction bid management platform, Procurified, during the week, secured a $ 1.1 million Seed Round led by Aditum Investment.

The Dubai-based construction bid management platform confirmed the funding in a statement announcing the company’s intent.

What you should know: The United States-based Signal Peak Ventures, Al Hathboor Group, Empede Capital and Strategic Angels participated in the exercise.

African healthcare startup, Epione Health Villages, on Thursday struck a partnership deal for the promotion of mental health therapy.

The Founder of Epione Health Villages, Garikai Govati, in a statement described the partnership deal as strategic.

What you should know: Vimbo Health, a digital therapy platform, provides evidence-based Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) based techniques.

A United Kingdom-based healthcare provider, Cera, during the week secured $320 million in equity and debt financing.

READ ALSO: TechNigeria: A weekly digest of what went down in Nigeria’s tech space

Dr. Ben Maruthappu, who confirmed the latest funding in a statement on Thursday, said the equity side of the funding round was led by Cera’s existing investor Kairos HQ.

What you should know: The round was led by the Vanderbilt University Endowment, Schroders Capital, Jane Street Capital, Yabeo Capital, Squarepoint Capital, Guinness Asset Management, Oltre Impact, 8090 Partners, technology investor Robin Klein (of LocalGlobe fame) and others.

Also during the week, a Canada-based startup, Proto, secured a $5.6 million Series A to help the expansion of its venture.

The startup made the announcement in a statement forwarded to Ripples Nigeria on Thursday.

Proto, according to the media, helps contact center operators from the Philippines to Zambia for the automation of local language customer experiences.

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

Founder and CEO, Gbenga Odegbami, confirmed the development in a notice to journalists on Tuesday.

What you should know: The latest fund brings the total fund raised by the startup since 2020 to $2.5 million.

Finally, Gogetta launched its equity-based crowdfunding platform during the week in South Africa.

The Co-founder, Jeff Miller, while confirming the launch in a statement on Tuesday, said Gogetta was powered by respected administrators in the small-cap alternative investment space, Grovest.

Miller pointed out that Gogetta was established to support African businesses seeking funds via an innovative crowdfunding platform.

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