In 2025, the financing of African tech did not only rebounded: its nature has changed profoundly. According to Partech Africa Tech Venture Capital Report 2025, published on January 22 in Paris, the debt has fallen imposed as the structuring engine of venture capital on the continent, marking a historic turning point in the way in which African startups are financed and developed.

Out of a total of 4.1 billion dollars raised by African tech startups in 2025, up 25% over one year, the debt financing reached a record level of $1.6 billion, representing a spectacular increase of 63% year-on-year. With 107 transactions recorded (+39%), debt now represents 41% of all of invested capital, compared to 31% in 2024 and barely 17% in 2019. Never, In the recent history of the African tech ecosystem, debt had not occupied such a central place.

This transition marks a stage of maturity. Where the In previous years, the focus was almost exclusively on fundraising. clean, 2025 marks the emergence of a more sophisticated model, in which the debt is becoming a strategic tool for growth, capital optimization and financial discipline. “Debt has reached an historic level, both in amounts only in number of transactions. These signals reflect a larger ecosystem healthy and more mature”, analyzes Tidjane Dème, general partner at Partech Africa.

At the same time, equity financing has regained a more stable trajectory. Startups raised 2.4 billion dollars in equity (+8%) through 462 transactions, while the total number of transactions, debt and equity combined, increased to 570 (+7%), putting end of two years of contraction. Series A and B have in particular benefitted from this standardization, with average tower sizes increasing 21% and 12% respectively, a sign of renewed investor confidence on the most proven models.

Geographically, the rise of debt has reinforced the polarization of flows. Kenya has risen to the top of the continent with $1.04 billion raised, driven by its leadership on debt financing and the concentration of four of the nine megadeals recorded in 2025. South Africa, for its part, took back the first place in own funds, in terms of amounts and number of transactions, a first since 2017, illustrating a market fuelled by a regular flow of transactions rather only through a few exceptional surveys.

Beyond the four major poles of Kenya, Africa from the South, Egypt and Nigeria — which account for 72% of the amounts raised —, the The financing map remains mixed. Only Senegal, Morocco and Ghana have crossed the $50 million threshold in equity, confirming the difficulty for secondary ecosystems to attract capital significant. Francophone Africa excluding the “Big Four” is nevertheless doing well. of the game, capturing 68% of equity financing and 64% of transactions in this category.

Sectorally, the dominance of fintech in equity is growing maintains, with 769 million dollars raised, but its relative weight falls back at taking advantage of other fast-growing verticals. Cleantech, healthtech and the enterprise solutions have all exceeded 200 million dollars raised, a first since 2021-2022, reflecting an increased diversification of the ecosystem. This trend mechanically reinforces the attractiveness of debt, particularly suitable for models that generate more cash flows foreseeable.

As a watermark, 2025 thus appears as a pivotal year. Debt is no longer just a marginal instrument, but a pillar of financing African tech, revealing an ecosystem that gains in depth, sophistication and credibility in the markets of capital. While growth remains selective and concentrated, the shift made this Year could well permanently redefine the rules of the game for founders and investors on the continent.