Accounteer Wins the MEST Africa Challenge, Gets $50k Equity Funding

Accounteer, a Nigerian business services startup, has just been announced the winner of the MEST Africa Challenge. The startup took home the grand prize of $50,000 equity financing from Meltwater Entrepreneurial School of Technology (MEST).

.@Accounteer, a Nigerian payroll and accounting management software startup, has won the first @MESTAfrica Challenge.

They take home $50K after beating Ghana's @Cowtribe, Kenya's Data Integrated and South Africa's Swift Vee to the prize. #MESTAfrica

— Mac-Jordan 🇨🇦🇬🇭🇺🇦 (@MacJordaN) June 21, 2018

Held at the MEST Africa Summit in South Africa, the MEST Africa Challenge saw the winners of the regional competition slug it out for the grand prize. These were start-ups like Ghana’s Cowtribe, Kenya’s Data Integrated, Swift Vee from South Africa, and Nigeria’s Accounteer.

Each startup got its chance to pitch to an enthusiastic community of global investors, entrepreneurs, and business executives.

https://twitter.com/Accounteer/status/1009030386305953792

Accounteer won the contest, taking home the prize funding, as well as access to mentorship and support packages from MEST.

However, at the MEST Africa Summit, themed “the Year of the African Scaleup?”, the contest was not the only thing on the cards. The summit also discussed emerging trends and challenges in the African market.

About the MEST Africa Challenge

MEST Africa is a startup incubator. For 10 years, it has specialized in investing in exceptional startups in Africa, providing them with training programs and mentorship. Since its creation in 2008, MEST Africa has invested about $20m into various programs supporting African entrepreneurs.

Next up at #MESTAfricaSummit: @Accounteer, solving the problem of paper record keeping for 37 million #NigerianSMEs and growing across the continent #AfricanFinTech #AfricanInnovation pic.twitter.com/9kB5SocOtb

— Lexi Novitske (@anovitske) June 20, 2018

Despite its long history in Africa, the MEST Africa Challenge is its first startup pitch competition for companies outside its incubator program.

Accounteer, specialising in accounting and HR software, is the winner of the first edition. The startup is solving the problem of easy and affordable record-keeping by targeting small and medium scale enterprises.