The Meltwater Entrepreneurial School of Technology (MEST Africa), in partnership with Absa, has announced the top 10 finalists for the 2025 MEST Africa Challenge (MAC), a pan-African pitch competition supporting early-stage startups in the technology sector.
Following semi-final pitches on 28 and 29 October, ten ventures were selected from a competitive pool across eight African markets for their potential to scale and reshape digital financial systems on the continent.
The 10 finalists are:
mystocks.africa (Botswana)
Credify Africa Inc (Uganda)
Logistify AI (Kenya)
Kutana Technologies Ltd (Ghana)
Investa Farm (Kenya)
Black Swan (Mauritius)
Mighty Finance Solution Inc (Zambia)
Devdraft AI (Zambia)
Kanzu Finance Ltd (Uganda)
Farmsky (Kenya)
“Each year, the Challenge grows not only in reach but in the depth of innovation it attracts,”
said Ashwin Ravichandran, Portfolio Advisor and MAC Lead at MEST Africa.
“We’re seeing founders build financial systems that are inclusive, intelligent, and unmistakably African. The Top 10 exemplify the kind of purposeful innovation driving Africa’s next wave of growth.”
Now in its seventh edition, the 2025 Challenge focuses on fintech ventures and startups with embedded financial technology solutions operating across eight of Absa’s nine priority markets: Botswana, Ghana, Kenya, Mauritius, Mozambique, Seychelles, Uganda, and Zambia.
The ten finalists will compete in the Grand Finale in Cape Town on 26 November.
The winning startup will receive US$50,000 in equity investment, access to MEST Africa’s global network of mentors, partners, and investors, and the opportunity to collaborate with Absa.
Featured image credit: Meltwater
