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Techstars shortlists three Nigerian startups for accelerator. 2 other things and a trivia

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

1. Techstars shortlists three Nigerian startups for accelerator

American seed accelerator, Techstar, has shortlisted three Nigerian startups for participation in its Techstars NYC accelerator program.

The shortlisted startups include Torche, Vesti, and Voyance, according to the Techstar team.

Since its inception in 2006, the company has accepted over 1,600 companies into its programs with a combined market capitalization of $18.2bn USD.

As part of benefits, the three Nigerian startups are set to receive US$20,000 in equity funding and access to other support services in return for a six percent stake.

In addition, they will access learning opportunities, networking, and coaching from the accelerator program.

On of the startup, Torche, is a payment solution startup that enables customers in Africa make payments and other transactions with their fingerprints through biometric POS terminals.

The second startup on the list, Vesti, operates as a neobank providing financial services, information and community for international migrants who do not have access to banking.

The third startup, Voyance, provides a no-code data infrastructure platform that makes data teams more productive by automating complex data processes.

Tech Trivia: Each request made to a web server is also called a what?
A Page View
B Visit
C Impression
D Hit
Answer: see end of post

2. Nigeria’s Digital Bank, Umba, closes $15M in Series A funding

A Nigerian digital banking company, Umba, has closed a $15M in Series A funding.

Read also: P&G Egypt partners UNTAP Technologies to launch Unbox Innovation Challenge

Umba’s CEO, Tiernan Kennedy, confirmed the development in a press release to the media.

The funding, according to Tiernan, was led by Costanoa Ventures, and saw the participation of Tom Blomfield, the co-founder of Monzo, and previous backers including Lachy Groom and ACT Ventures.

Umba is an African digital bank with claims to offer free bank accounts and financial services to its customers.

The San Francisco-based company was founded in 2018 by Barry O’Mahony, and Tiernan Kennedy.

Umba’s CEO, Tiernan Kennedy, who spoke on the development, noted that the new raiser and partners would help fuel the growth of the company.

He said: “This is a great milestone for Umba, and we’re excited to bring in new partners to fuel our growth.

“There is great potential for Umba to provide useful, accessible products and services that financially empower underserved customers.”

3. Saudi game startup, Spoilz Games, secures $700k

A Saudi Arabia-based company, Spoilz Games, has secured a 2.6M SAR ($700k) in pre-seed funding round from angel investors.

This was contained in a press release from the startup’s CEO, Musab Almalki.

The raiser, according to Musab, would be used to further develop and publish high-quality, entertaining games that create memorable experiences for users.

He said: “MENA’s gaming industry is expected to grow rapidly in the next few months, creating a need for quality content to meet users’ expectations.

“This fund will enable us to grow and publish games that compete globally.”

The startup was founded in 2020 during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Trivia answer: Hit

A hit is a metric used in website analytics. While “hits” and “visits” are sometimes used interchangeably, they are two different things.

A visit is recorded when a user visits a webpage. A hit is recorded for each resource that is downloaded from a web server.

Therefore, it is common for hits to outnumber visits, often by a ratio of more than 10 to 1.

By Kayode Hamsat

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