3 Nigerian startups receive $150,000 each from 500 startups

Three Nigerian startups Nigerian startups Fyodor Biotechnologies, MailHaven and Mobile Forms have received US$150,000 each in seed funding from the Silicon Valley-based 500 Startups accelerator programme. They will also receive workspace, mentorship and access to the 500 Startups network.

These startups are part of the 36 innovative startups from 14 countries in the the latest incarnation of the 500 Startups Seed Program, Batch 22 (B22), which kicked off in San Francisco some weeks ago.

42% of the companies are based outside of the United States, with founders representing Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Hong Kong, Israel, Italy, Nigeria, Portugal, Russia, Singapore, South Africa, the United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom.

Batch 22 includes a focus on FinTech (9 companies), Data (7 companies), and Digital Health (4 companies), with other startups ranging from facial recognition to supply chain management to the largest global community of motorcycle riders.  14% of companies have a female founder.  31% of founders are Asian, 11% Middle Eastern, 10% LatinX and 8% Black.

Here are the three startups:

Fyodor Biotechnologies — Developing a non-invasive technology that helps people with a fever diagnose malaria in 25 minutes using a few drops of urine instead of blood.

MailHaven — An electronic mailbox that helps suburban homeowners secure and monitor their deliveries without the need for wired power or home WiFi.

Mobile Forms — A platform for local and international businesses to crowdsource reliable market data in Africa.