mSurvey Brings Africa’s Data to Light

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  • 80% of Africa’s 1.2 billion people use a mobile phone
  • Consumer spending in Africa is projected to reach $2.5 trillion by 2025

Kenya-based startup mSurvey raised a $3.5 million series A round led by TLcom Capital Partners to expand its operations to South Africa. Will this six-year old startup bring light to the darkness around consumer data across Africa?

Why This Matters: Consumer spending will reach $2.5 trillion in Africa by 2025, according to McKinsey & Company. The more data companies have on consumers, the better they will be able to target them with products that meet their wants and needs. McKinsey’s projection could be significantly higher considering the low amount of data present on African consumers, particularly those living, working, and consuming in the continent’s informal sector. Africa’s informal economy makes up 38% of Africa’s GDP, according to the IMF.

What is the informal economy? This is the part of an economy neither taxed nor monitored by a government. This lack of monitoring reduces the amount of data companies have available to shape their business decisions. mSurvey is changing this using mobile surveys to provide clients with real-time insights on what’s happening with consumers. This is a solution very similar to what Survey Monkey provides its enterprise clients in the U.S. Around 80% of Africa’s 1.2 billion people use a mobile phone, according to the GSM Association. This provides mSurvey with a large market to gain insights from as it scales to more countries across the continent.

Situational Awareness: mSurvey raised its initial seed funding from Cross Culture VC, a venture capital firm that invests in entrepreneurs who are moving the needle in the technology and consumer industries. The firm has invested follow-on capital in an second seed round, in addition to the $3.5 million series A round. Look out for the additional investments Cross Culture VC will make in Africa’s startup space as a result of the insights mSurvey garners from its conversations with consumers.

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