HomeListsTop Funded South Africa Startups of 2021
Startup List
Public
Generated Feb 16, 2026

Top Funded South Africa Startups of 2021

Ranked by total funding announced in 2021 (USD).

Curated by StartupList Africa
Submit startup
2021 Funding
$1.3B
Avg Valuation
$1.2B
Companies
25
Backer relationships
261

Market Map

25 companies in this list

1
Go1

Go1 is a South African eLearning startup which offers digital learning for entire workforce.

HQ Location
Johannesburg, South Africa
Stage
Late Stage Venture
Latest tracked round
June 2021
2021 Funding
$200M
Backers
24
2
TymeBank

TymeBank is a South African fully black-owned and controlled investment company.

HQ Location
Johannesburg, South Africa
Stage
Late Stage Venture
Latest tracked round
December 2024
2021 Funding
$179M
Backers
11
3
Teraco Data Environments

Teraco Data Environments is a network and hosting company providing vendor neutral data centers in South Africa.

HQ Location
Cape Town, South Africa
Stage
Debt Financing
Latest tracked round
February 2021
2021 Funding
$170M
Backers
3
4
dLocal

dLocal enables global merchants to accept and send payments across emerging markets via one API.

HQ Location
Cape Town, South Africa
Stage
Post-IPO Secondary
Latest tracked round
September 2025
2021 Funding
$150M
Backers
9
5
JUMO

JUMO is a technology platform, developed for building and running financial services.

HQ Location
Cape Town, South Africa
Stage
Early Stage Venture
Latest tracked round
November 2025
2021 Funding
$120M
Backers
14
6
MFS Africa

Cross-border, cross-currency, cross-network payments.

HQ Location
Johannesburg, South Africa
Stage
Debt Financing
Latest tracked round
June 2022
2021 Funding
$100M
Backers
17
7
Yoco

Yoco is a point-of-sale payments provider for small businesses in Africa.

HQ Location
Cape Town, South Africa
Stage
Late Stage Venture
Latest tracked round
July 2021
2021 Funding
$83M
Backers
22
8
Ozow

Ozow is a South African startup that simplifies transactions for customers and merchants.

HQ Location
Johannesburg, South Africa
Stage
Early Stage Venture
Latest tracked round
November 2021
2021 Funding
$48M
Backers
5
9
LifeQ

LifeQ is a SA biotech startup which provides users with access to health information derived from wearable devices.

HQ Location
Stellenbosch, South Africa
Stage
Early Stage Venture
Latest tracked round
May 2021
2021 Funding
$47M
Backers
2
10
RapidDeploy

RapidDeploy is a South African Cloud-based Computer Aided Dispatch (CAD) and Analytics platform.

HQ Location
Cape Town, South Africa
Stage
Funding Round
Latest tracked round
August 2023
2021 Funding
$40M
Backers
13
11
Planet42

Access to mobility for the underbanked

HQ Location
Johannesburg, South Africa
Stage
Seed
Latest tracked round
February 2023
2021 Funding
$30M
Backers
12
12
Aerobotics

Aerobotics is a data analytics company, using aerial imagery and machine learning algorithms to help farmers identify pest and disease early

HQ Location
Cape Town, South Africa
Stage
Series B
Latest tracked round
January 2021
2021 Funding
$17M
Backers
14
13
Adumo

Adumo is South Africa’s largest independent payments processor

HQ Location
Bryanston, South Africa
Stage
Debt Financing
Latest tracked round
November 2022
2021 Funding
$15M
Backers
4
14
WhereIsMyTransport

WhereIsMyTransport is a big data platform for sustainable mobility in emerging markets; empowering people everywhere to get where they want to go.

HQ Location
Cape Town, South Africa
Stage
Early Stage Venture
Latest tracked round
June 2021
2021 Funding
$14.5M
Backers
16
15
Zeelo

Zeelo is a South African startup providing highly efficient transportation for commuting and school runs.

HQ Location
Durban, South Africa
Stage
Early Stage Venture
Latest tracked round
August 2023
2021 Funding
$12M
Backers
9
16
Naked Insurance

Naked Insurance provides instant, honest insurance at game-changing prices.

HQ Location
Johannesburg, South Africa
Stage
Early Stage Venture
Latest tracked round
January 2025
2021 Funding
$11M
Backers
9
17
KAS Africa

KAS Africa is a South African contract manufacturer of personal care and homecare products.

HQ Location
Johannesburg, South Africa
Stage
Private Equity
Latest tracked round
April 2021
2021 Funding
$10M
Backers
1
18
Stitch

Stitch is a South African fintech platform building API to make Africa a world-leader in fintech.

HQ Location
Cape Town, South Africa
Stage
Early Stage Venture
Latest tracked round
April 2025
2021 Funding
$6M
Backers
21
19
Carry1st

Carry1st leverages mobile technology to delight consumers and empower small businesses across Africa

HQ Location
Cape Town, South Africa
Stage
Venture
Latest tracked round
January 2024
2021 Funding
$6M
Backers
21
20
OfferZen

OfferZen is a developer job marketplace where 1000+ SA and EU companies hire from a community of 100 000+ makers.

HQ Location
Cape Town, South Africa
Stage
Early Stage Venture
Latest tracked round
January 2024
2021 Funding
$5.1M
Backers
3
21
FlexClub

FlexClub is a car subscription platform that is unlocking access to cars for members who want the flexibility to own the car if and when it suits them.

HQ Location
Johannesburg, South Africa
Stage
Seed
Latest tracked round
March 2021
2021 Funding
$5M
Backers
7
22
NFTfi

NFTfi is a simple marketplace for NFT collateralized loans.

HQ Location
Cape Town, South Africa
Stage
Seed
Latest tracked round
November 2021
2021 Funding
$5M
Backers
5
23
AURA

Aura is a South African cloud-based security and safety startup.

HQ Location
Johannesburg, South Africa
Stage
Early Stage Venture
Latest tracked round
May 2025
2021 Funding
$4M
Backers
6
24
Mobiz

Mobiz is an easy-to-use and highly intuitive mobile marketing tool that allows businesses to engage with their customers

HQ Location
Cape Town, South Africa
Stage
Seed
Latest tracked round
November 2021
2021 Funding
$4M
Backers
9
25
Revix

Revix is a South African cryptocurrency investment platform which allows users to create a diversified portfolio of top cryptocurrencies

HQ Location
Cape Town, South Africa
Stage
Grant
Latest tracked round
July 2021
2021 Funding
$4M
Backers
4

Showing 25 of 25 companies