The investment marks a significant milestone for the Moroccan-based company, which has gained a strong foothold in the eyewear market within just four years.

The startup, known for its stylish and affordable eyewear, leverages a fully digitized supply chain to serve a broad customer base.

Since raising $335,000 in 2021, LNKO has grown to serve over 100,000 customers, established 10 retail locations across Morocco, and built a robust online presence spanning 24 countries.

Beltone Venture Capital views this investment as a strategic move in its broader efforts to support high-potential businesses across Africa.

Ali Mokhtar, CEO of Beltone Venture Capital, underscored LNKO’s impressive growth and innovative business model, stating that the company aligns with Beltone’s commitment to backing transformative ventures in the region.

LNKO’s CEO and Founder, Maha Bennani, expressed enthusiasm about the partnership, emphasizing Beltone’s expertise in scaling D2C businesses.

With this investment, LNKO aims to accelerate its expansion and make high-quality, stylish eyewear accessible to more consumers across the continent.

The initiative is designed to support the continent’s expanding adoption of blockchain technology by providing financial backing and mentorship to emerging enterprises.

The fund will offer grants of up to $150,000 to pre-seed and seed-stage startups, with the potential for larger investments for projects utilizing StarkNet, the company’s proprietary decentralized application platform built on Ethereum.

The initiative will focus on high-potential startups across West, South, and East Africa, emphasizing teams that demonstrate a blend of strong technical expertise and deep local market understanding.

Kheireddine Kamal, Head of Africa Ventures at StarkWare, highlighted the program’s objectives, stating:

“We are looking for projects in African countries where economic conditions such as high inflation, volatile exchange rates, or low financial inclusion make blockchain solutions particularly relevant.”

In addition to financial support, selected startups will receive mentorship and the possibility of securing further investments of up to $500,000 from StarkWare, with even larger amounts available for standout projects.

StarkNet aims to provide African businesses with an alternative to traditional financial systems, leveraging blockchain’s scalability and efficiency.

Africa’s rapidly growing young population and increasing adoption of digital assets position the continent as a key player in the global blockchain ecosystem.

With consumer and business spending in Africa projected to reach $6.7 trillion by 2030, the demand for blockchain-based solutions continues to rise.

Established in 2018, StarkWare specializes in zero-knowledge-proof systems to enhance blockchain scalability.

The company’s key products include StarkEx, a scaling engine launched in 2020 that optimizes transaction efficiency, and StarkNet, a decentralized Layer 2 network introduced in 2021 to enable low-cost, scalable dApps.