The threshold was crossed in September, following strong fundraising totals in June and August, although access to capital remains uneven across companies.

In its September 28 update, the tracker reported that the milestone had been reached the previous week.

That puts this year’s fundraising pace a few weeks behind 2025 and 2023, when funding passed $2 billion in August, but substantially ahead of 2024, when the threshold was reached in December.

June contributed $515 million and August added $455 million to this year’s total.

As of the September update, fundraising for the month was unlikely to match either figure unless a major transaction increased the tally, with complete September data still pending.

August’s results illustrate how large transactions can lift overall funding without producing a similar increase in the number of businesses securing investment.

Just 31 startups announced funding of at least $100,000 during the month, compared with a previous 12-month average of 43.

The five largest transactions accounted for 84% of August’s funding, while mobility company Moove’s $250 million Series C represented 55% of the monthly total.

The broader figures also show a narrower pool of funded companies.

Through August, 269 distinct startups had raised at least $100,000, down from 332 during the same period in 2025.

Equity funding nevertheless rose 23% to $1.35 billion, driven largely by major rounds from Spiro and Moove.

Together, these figures indicate that stronger equity investment has been concentrated among fewer recipients, limiting what the headline total says about fundraising conditions for the wider startup market.

Africa: The Big Deal’s Max Cuvellier Giacomelli suggested that annual funding could approach $3 billion if recent fundraising patterns hold.

That remains an outlook rather than a confirmed result, with the final total dependent on transactions recorded during the remaining months of 2026.

For investors and founders, the practical measure of a broader improvement will be whether more businesses secure financing alongside the large rounds supporting current totals.

The decline in funded companies through August shows that capital deployment and access to capital are moving at different speeds across Africa’s startup market.