Twenty African startups have been named semi-finalists in the MEST Africa Challenge (MAC) 2025, a flagship pan-African startup competition powered by MEST Africa in partnership with Absa Bank. Now in its seventh edition, the Challenge brings to life the theme “You Build, We Scale” a rallying call to founders across the continent who are building the next generation of financial solutions for Africa.
Spanning Absa’s eight key markets, that is Botswana, Ghana, Kenya, Mauritius, Mozambique, Seychelles, Uganda and Zambia this year’s cohort of entrepreneurs is tackling some of the continent’s most urgent digital finance challenges, from next-generation payments and smart credit to cross-border trade and agri-fintech innovation.
A Pan-African Push for Scalable Innovation
“The quality and diversity of ideas this year reflect a continent in motion,” said Ashwin Ravichandran, Portfolio Advisor at MEST Africa and Lead for the Challenge. “These founders are proving that innovation is not imported, it’s born out of Africa’s lived realities. They’re combining technology and empathy to create lasting solutions within their communities.”
The selected startups are reimagining how finance can work for Africans rather than around them developing tools that simplify transactions, unlock access to credit and democratize investment opportunities across urban and rural markets alike.
For Absa, a long-standing partner of MEST Africa, the collaboration goes beyond sponsorship. It represents a strategic commitment to digital inclusion and financial access across Africa’s emerging economies.
“Congratulations to all semi-finalists. The ingenuity we’re seeing demonstrates the strength of Africa’s entrepreneurial ecosystem,” said Tawanda Chatikobo, Head of Digital for Absa Regional Operations (ARO), Retail and Business Banking.
“At Absa, we view ourselves not as observers but as co-creators of this transformation simplifying banking, expanding access and supporting entrepreneurs shaping Africa’s economic future.”
Spotlighting Africa’s Brightest Founders
From Nairobi to Lusaka, the 20 semi-finalists reflect the continent’s dynamic fintech momentum:
- Botswana – mystock.africa, a retail investing platform giving Africans access to stocks, ETFs and alternative assets.
- Ghana – Brydge, a supply chain platform simplifying cross-border trade; Kutana Technologies Limited, a multi-currency B2B payment platform powered by AI and stablecoins.
- Kenya – Logistify AI, optimizing SME procurement; Farmsky Ventures, a digital lending and crop insurance platform, Investa Farm, offering voucher-backed loans for climate-resilient inputs.
- Mauritius – Black Swan, using AI and alternative data to build credit scores for the unbanked.
- Mozambique – Simulador Bancário, a financial planning and loan simulation platform.
- Uganda – Paytota, a unified payments gateway; Xzerra, enabling fingerprint-based cashless payments, Kanzu Finance Limited, digitizing SACCO and microfinance systems, Axiom Zorn, unlocking finance for smallholder farmers, Credify Africa, bridging Africa’s SME trade finance gap, eMaisha Pay, driving financial inclusion for agro-traders.
- Zambia – Ebusaka Green Technology, a waste-to-value FinTech platform; KreativBox Technology, offering salary-backed digital loans, Mighty Finance Solution Inc, embedding loans for women entrepreneurs; DevDraft AI, simplifying cross-border payments with stablecoins, Homer Price Agency Solutions Limited, managing a nationwide digital banking network.
- Seychelles – Fusepay, a licensed payment provider creating a digital finance hub for frontier markets.
These startups will pitch virtually during the week of October 27, 2025, with ten finalists advancing to the Final Demo Day in Cape Town on November 26, 2025. The overall winner will receive USD $50,000 in equity investment, access to MEST Africa’s global network of mentors and investors, and the chance to explore pilot partnerships with Absa.
Entrepreneurship as Africa’s Economic Engine
The Challenge arrives at a time when African fintech continues to attract global attention. According to Techpoint Africa’s 2025 Q1 Funding Report, fintech ventures captured over 40% of all startup investment on the continent, underscoring the sector’s strategic importance to Africa’s digital economy.
“MEST and Absa are not just running a competition,” said Tamu Dutuma, Head of Strategy and Transformation for ARO Technology at Absa. “They’re building bridges between ideas and markets. The solutions we’re seeing here could reshape how Africans save, borro and trade.”
From waste-to-value platforms in Lusaka to AI-driven credit scoring in Port Louis, the MEST Africa Challenge showcases how local entrepreneurs are solving uniquely African problems with globally scalable innovation.
At its heart, this initiative is a testament to the continent’s quiet revolution led not by aid, but by entrepreneurs who dare to build.
