Cascador Deploys Over US$5 Million to Seven African Startups

Cascador, a platform that supports African entrepreneurs building businesses with a social impact focus, has deployed more than US$5 million in growth capital to seven startups during its second annual Pitch Day. The funding initiative builds on Cascador’s Catalytic Fund, a US$2 million annual programme launched last year to provide tailored financing to companies that have completed the organisation’s ScaleUp programme. Since its establishment in 2019, Cascador has worked with more than 60 entrepreneurs who have collectively secured over US$55 million in funding.

Startups Secure Growth Capital

The latest Pitch Day took place on June 3, bringing together founders, investors, business leaders, and industry experts. Selected entrepreneurs presented their businesses, growth plans, and funding requirements before a panel of judges and potential backers. Agriarche emerged as the largest recipient, securing US$1.7 million in debt financing. Koolboks followed with US$1.4 million, while Powerstove received US$1.2 million. Electric mobility startup First Electric secured US$357,000 in debt funding.

Additional investments were awarded to Fortics, which received US$142,000 in debt financing, while Stears and Indigenius AI secured equity investments of US$450,000 and US$250,000 respectively.

According to Cascador founder Dave DeLucia, the programme has now channelled more than US$9 million to African growth-stage companies since the launch of Pitch Day two years ago.

“In just two years, Pitch Day has awarded more than US$9 million to growth-stage African founders, helping to build a new generation of entrepreneurs equipped to scale transformative businesses. We’re now looking for the next cohort of exceptional founders to join our 2026 ScaleUp programme and hope to see them on stage at the next Pitch Day,” he said.

Deina Mayaki, founder of Agriarche, said the ScaleUp programme helped the company sharpen its market positioning and funding approach while preparing for expansion.

“Cascador’s ScaleUp programme built upon my team’s ability to translate learning into action by helping us refine our message and market position, adjust our funding strategy, and adapt without defensiveness. The Catalytic Fund due diligence team assessed Agriarche’s financial strength, resourcefulness, and track record of success, and they rewarded our potential for scale and impact with a new NGN2.5 billion credit facility to power our growth,” she said.

Addressing Africa’s Growth Capital Challenge

The latest funding round highlights growing efforts to address one of Africa’s biggest startup challenges: access to growth capital. While early-stage funding attracts much of the attention, businesses looking to expand operations and enter new markets frequently face a shortage of financing options. Through its ScaleUp programme and Catalytic Fund, Cascador is positioning itself as one of the organisations working to close that gap.