Editor’s note: African-Startups is a sister publication of EU-Startups, bringing trusted coverage of startups, venture capital, and innovation across Africa.
Six African startups have won the 2026 FINCA Ventures Prize Competition, sharing $400k in grant funding. The prize comes from FINCA’s impact investing arm.
FINCA is an organisation focused on ending poverty. Founded in 1984, it started as a microfinance initiative and has since become a leader in financial inclusion.
FINCA offers financial services, impact investing, and research to help people create better futures for themselves. The name “finca” means farm or farmhouse in Spanish, reflecting its roots in supporting farmers and rural communities in Latin America.
Although it was originally an acronym for Foundation for International Community Assistance, it has been known simply as FINCA since 1989.
In its third year, the competition received more than 700 applications across two categories: FinTech for financial inclusion and sustainable agriculture and food systems.
Kenyan startups VunaPay and Kumbatia Seafood took first place in their categories and received $100k each. Second-place winners got $60k, and third-place winners $40k.
“Africa’s future will be shaped by entrepreneurs who see opportunity where others see market failure. One of the most important ways we can support these founders is by backing them early and helping them build the credibility and traction to attract additional investment and achieve meaningful scale,” said Andrée Simon, Global CEO of FINCA.
Six finalists pitched to a judging panel on 6 October 2026 in San Francisco, at an event hosted by Cisco. The winners were announced the same evening. Three of the six finalists are led or co-led by women. The panel included people from impact investing, venture capital, FinTech, and sustainable development. Here are the winners:
Category: FinTech for financial inclusion
VunaPay
Place: First
Prize: $100k
Location: Kenya
Founders: Gatwiri Njogu-Mokaya and Koya Matsuno
VunaPay builds payment and credit infrastructure for agricultural value chains. It pays smallholder farmers instantly through their cooperatives. The company says its platform makes payments more transparent and gives farmers easier access to formal financial services.
The award will help VunaPay grow its model that provides smallholder farmers with better access to timely payments and financing through agricultural cooperatives.
“There are about 54,000 cooperatives across Africa, and each of them has between 500 and 10,000 farmers. This equates to millions of smallholder households that we can serve,” said Koya Matsuno, co-founder of VunaPay.
Nesti
Place: Second
Prize: $60k
Location: Kenya
Founders: Christabel Ojuok and David Kimani
nesti turns rent payments into a credit-building tool. It records regular, on-time payments and uses them to create a financial identity for renters. That identity is meant to help them qualify for fair credit and, eventually, buy a home.
ChatCash
Place: Third
Prize: $40k
Location: Rwanda and Zimbabwe
Founders: John Josiah Sakala, Leon Kanamugire, Edgar Erick, Jude Egbokwu
ChatCash is an AI-powered system that turns WhatsApp into a digital shop for small merchants, with payment buttons built into the chat. CEO John Josiah Sakala says merchants using it double their conversion rates. Their sales also create a transaction record that can help them access financial services later.
Category: Sustainable agriculture and food systems
Kumbatia Seafood
Place: First
Prize: $100k
Location: Kenya
Founders: Bernard Iha Thoya, Will Gertler, and Nelson Ondego Mumata
Kumbatia Seafood buys, finances, and distributes artisanal fish from small-scale fishing communities on Kenya’s Swahili Coast. It combines financing, cold chain logistics, export-grade processing, and digital traceability. This links fishers to premium markets while protecting the marine ecosystems they rely on.
Will Gertler said the team will use the funding to expand the company’s operations to increase impact for small-scale fishers on the Swahili Coast:
“The FINCA Ventures Prize will go towards working capital and expansion financing to build out our first sales department and scale our intervention to a dozen more communities by 2030,” said Will Gertler, co-founder of Kumbatia Seafood.
eAgro
Place: Second
Prize: $60k
Location: Zimbabwe
Founders: Tafadzwa Chikwereti and Golden Nhunhama
eAgro builds AI tools that work without internet. Farmers in rural areas get real-time farming advice on basic mobile phones. The service draws on AI, satellite data, soil science, and local advisory systems to raise yields, cut losses, and improve climate resilience.
Pollen Patrollers
Place: Third
Prize: $40k
Location: Kenya
Founders: Margaret Wanjiku, Julieta Wanjohi, Charity Maina
Pollen Patrollers uses solar-powered IoT devices and AI-driven pollination services. Its aim is to help smallholder farmers and beekeepers grow more crops and reduce bee colony collapse. CEO Margaret Wanjiku says the company is also creating green jobs for women and young people in East Africa.
“Entrepreneurship remains one of the most powerful drivers of economic progress across the continent, but early-stage businesses can’t do it alone. Catalytic capital is what allows founders to reach the scale where both financial returns and social impact compound. Investors and partners willing to act early play an essential role in supporting startups through critical growth stages and drawing attention to opportunities that might otherwise be overlooked,” said Winnie Mwangi, Managing Director of FINCA Ventures.
