From MEST's $700,000 planned investment in 7 startups to SnapChat's $150,000 investment in South Africa's Hashtag Our Stories, here's all the funding activity for the week.
1. Investec, Crossfin concludes Series-A round with SA chatbot service Atura
Atura, an automated chatbot for asset management companies, landed an undisclosed Series-A investment from Blue Garnet Investments, an investment company that counts Investec and local investment fund Crossfin among others as investors. More details on Ventureburn.
2. MEST to invest a total of $700k in these 7 African startups
To mark their 10th anniversary, MEST announced that it will be investing $100k into each of its 7 graduates for this year. More details on Digest Africa.
3. SA startup PropertyFox acquires local platform Steeple for undisclosed amount
South Africa's PropertyFox announced that it had acquired its competitor Steeple, though for the amount was undisclosed. The two will be consolidated, with PropertyFox taking on all Steeple’s clients. Full story on Ventureburn.
4. SA journalism network Hashtag Our Stories lands $150k from Snapchat
SA mobile journalism network Hashtag Our Stories netted $150,000 in funding from Snapchat and a place in the US tech company’s startup accelerator, Yellow. The year-old Durban-founded network is run by former social media reporter at CNN, Yusuf Omar and his wife Sumaiya. More details on Ventureburn.
5. Medical device startup Sisu Global Health raises $1.2 million
Sisu Global has raised the money from existing investors, Camden Partners and Belle Michigan, as well as new investors Women’s Angel Investor Network of Dubai, the Kent & Russell Croft fund, and Chuck Clarvit, a Johns Hopkins University trustee. Though based in Baltimore, they are now looking towards Africa with this latest round. Full details on Biz Journals.
That's it for the week. Don't forget to subscribe to our newsletter to get this in your inbox. Enjoy your weekend!