Hello guys,
Welcome to our weekly recap of the big news + funding in Ghana’s startup ecosystem. Here’s a look at the bold moves shaping the ecosystem this week.
- Ghana’s Aquamet named finalist for the Africa Prize for Engineering Innovation with smart fish farming device.
- Affinity Africa doubles customer base to 100,000 after $8 million seed round.
- Sahara Impact Ventures bets on Agriarche to bridge gaps in Nigeria’s agri-value chain.
- Ex-AZA Finance Ghana boss Nana Yaw Owusu Banahene takes up Africa Head of Sales role at Bitpace.
- Bank of Ghana puts a $183,000 price tag on digital credit license.
- Ghana Startup Week returns to propel Ghanaian startups as an anchor of Ghana’s 24-Hour Economy.
- Ghana EdTech Alliance’s Kwame Nyatuame appointed to EduEvidence Advisory Board.
Accelerator/Incubator/Competitions
Ghana’s Aquamet named finalist for the Africa Prize for Engineering Innovation with smart fish farming device.
Ghanaian startup Aquamet, co-founded by Frank Owusu, Priscilla Brempong and Gabriel Lorlornyo has been named one of four finalists for the Royal Academy of Engineering’s 2025 Africa Prize for Engineering Innovation, the continent’s largest award for engineering entrepreneurship.
Aquamet is a smart water quality monitoring device that helps smallholder fish farmers track pH, oxygen, and temperature in real time, reducing fish mortality and boosting yields by up to 15%. The platform also connects farmers with extension services and buyers, making aquaculture more sustainable and profitable. Since being shortlisted, Aquamet has secured major partnerships across West Africa and with institutions such as the British High Commission and the Centre for Environmental Fisheries, Aquaculture Science.
The £50,000 prize will be awarded to the winner at the live final in Dakar, Senegal, on 16 October 2025, with the other finalists receiving £10,000 each.
Funding
Sahara Impact Ventures bets on Agriarche to bridge gaps in Nigeria’s agri-value chain.
Sahara Impact Ventures, the Accra-based climate-focused impact investor has invested in Agriarche, an agritech startup tackling inefficiencies in Nigeria’s agricultural markets. The company’s flagship platform, Kasuwa, connects farmers, aggregators, and buyers, helping reduce reliance on middlemen while cutting transportation costs. By providing real-time market information, wider buyer access, and trade transparency, Kasuwa aims to bridge the gap between demand and supply. The platform also opens up pathways to finance for farmers and aggregators by building verifiable trading histories.
Milestones
Affinity Africa doubles customer base to 100,000 after $8 million seed round.
Affinity Africa, the digital bank recently secured $8 million in seed funding, has crossed the 100,000 customer mark. The milestone comes just seven months after the company raised an $8m seed round to fuel its expansion. At the time of the raise, Affinity had onboarded just over 50,000 customers.
Over the past year, the startup has broadened its product offering with high-yield savings accounts such as Affinity Boost, which allows customers to set financial goals, choose flexible terms and top up their savings at any time. Its lending products, ranging from instant loans to working capital for small businesses, are powered by a proprietary credit-scoring model that it says makes borrowing up to 50% cheaper than other digital lenders in the market.
Talent Moves
Ex-AZA Finance Ghana boss Nana Yaw Owusu Banahene takes up Africa Head of Sales role at Bitpace.
Bitpace, the global crypto payment gateway, has appointed Nana Yaw Owusu Banahene as its new Head of Sales, Africa to drive regional growth. He will lead the company’s expansion across African markets by shaping sales strategy, forging strategic partnerships, and delivering tailored cross-border payment solutions for complex businesses.
Previously, he served as the Regional Head for African Partnerships at AZA Finance, a cross-border payments fintech, where he managed strategic alliances and business growth across multiple markets.
Ghana EdTech Alliance’s Kwame Nyatuame appointed to EduEvidence Advisory Board.
Kwame Nyatuame, President of the Ghana EdTech Alliance, has been appointed to the Advisory Board of EduEvidence, a global non-profit working to certify impactful education technologies.
EduEvidence was founded to bring clarity and trust to the fast-growing EdTech sector by certifying solutions that deliver measurable impact in classrooms and communities. Its certification framework evaluates technologies through five key dimensions: efficacy, effectiveness, equity, ethics, and environment. The organisation also aligns existing certifications from partner bodies into its gold, silver, and bronze standards, making it easier for governments, schools, and investors to identify solutions that work.
By joining the Advisory Board, Nyatuame will provide insight from Africa’s fast-emerging EdTech landscape, where technology is playing an increasingly important role in expanding access to quality education. His appointment underscores Ghana’s growing influence in global conversations about how to scale education innovations responsibly and equitably.
Policy
Bank of Ghana puts a $183,000 price tag on digital credit license.
The Bank of Ghana has introduced a licensing framework for Digital Credit Services Providers, setting the total entry cost at over GHS 2.26 million (≈ $183,000). To qualify, applicants must meet a minimum capital requirement of GHS 2 million (≈ $161,600), alongside additional fees: GHS 10,000 (≈ $800) processing fee, GHS 20,000 (≈ $1,600) licence fee, and GHS 100,000 (≈ $8,000) renewal fee every two years.
Beyond financial commitments, applicants must also submit detailed company profiles, governance structures, proof of shareholder eligibility, five-year business plans, ICT and cybersecurity frameworks, and risk management policies. The Bank of Ghana further requires proof of local infrastructure, data protection certification, and independent vulnerability assessments to safeguard digital lending operations.
Events
Ghana Startup Week returns to propel Ghanaian startups as an anchor of Ghana’s 24-Hour Economy.
The Association of Ghana Startups has launched the 2025 edition of its flagship event, Ghana Startup Week, with a renewed mission to position Ghanaian startups as the driving force of the country’s 24-Hour Economy. The three-day festival, scheduled for November 6 to 8, will celebrate the innovation and entrepreneurial energy shaping Ghana’s future.
This year’s theme, Fueling Ghana’s 24-Hour Economy: Startups as Catalysts, sets the tone for a vibrant programme of keynote speeches, policy dialogues, pitching competitions, exhibitions, investor matchmaking and the Ghana Innovation and Startup Awards 2025. Central to the conversations will be the Ghana Innovation and Startup Bill and the country’s five-year National Startup Development Strategy, both designed to build a stronger foundation for the ecosystem.
📬 That’s all for this week. Want to feature your startup, funding round, or product launch? Subscribe and email us at info@theinnovationspark.com
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Curated by The Ghana Innovation Journal, tracking Ghana’s startup momentum.
