Nigerian fintech startups Cleva and Miden have secured spots in the W24 batch of the renowned Silicon Valley-based Y Combinator accelerator, as part of 137 startups participating in the event, which commenced in January.
Cleva, founded in 2023, positions itself as a platform “democratising access to USD banking for emerging markets.” The startup enables users to receive payments into their digital Cleva accounts from clients, employers, and investors worldwide. In January, Cleva announced a successful pre-seed funding round of US$1.5 million, with Y Combinator as a notable investor. The round was led by 1984 Ventures and included participation from The Raba Partnership, Byld Ventures, FirstCheck Africa, and several angel investors.
The second Nigerian startup, Miden, founded in 2022, offers a solution allowing businesses to issue virtual cards to their customers through its API. Miden empowers businesses to seamlessly provide a range of financial products to their clientele.
Y Combinator’s interest in African startups has fluctuated since its W22 batch, during which 24 startups from the continent participated. Subsequently, the number of African startups engaged with Y Combinator has declined, with only seven participating in S22, followed by three in both W23 and S23 batches.
Among Y Combinator’s alumni are esteemed African startups such as Flutterwave, Paystack, and Kobo360, alongside others like Cowrywise, MarketForce, Kudi, WaystoCap, WorkPay, Healthlane, Trella, 54gene, CredPal, NALA, and Breadfast. While the accelerator occupies a somewhat vague position within Africa’s startup ecosystem, entrepreneurs have consistently commended its positive impact on their businesses.
Disrupt Africa reported in 2022 that Y Combinator had augmented its standard deal size to US$500,000, matching the funding secured by Cleva and Miden. Prior to this adjustment, Y Combinator typically invested US$125,000 for a seven percent equity stake. Under the new standard deal, startups also receive an additional US$375,000 through an uncapped SAFE with “Most Favoured Nation” (MFN) terms.
Y Combinator also played a pivotal role in nurturing early-stage companies like Airbnb, Coinbase, and Dropbox.
