#47 Morocco’s ORA scores $10 million without foreign VCs

Cybersecurity risks reached the highest halls of power in Kenya when the official presidential portal was defaced by hackers who demanded a ransom of 5 Bitcoins under threat of leaking sensitive personal data.

While the Ministry of Information, Communications, and the Digital Economy swiftly contained the incident and confirmed no government data was exfiltrated or lost, the high-profile breach highlights the urgent cyber vulnerabilities facing national digital infrastructure across the continent.

We unpack how the breach unfolded and discuss what it takes to defend sovereign systems against extortion tactics.

Other interesting stories in this episode:

• 100% Local Capital in Morocco: Super-app ORA Technologies expanded its Series A funding to $10 million, funded entirely by Moroccan investors, signalling growing domestic confidence in North Africa's tech ecosystem.
• FMO Backs M-KOPA Mobility: M-KOPA Kenya Mobility secured a $30 million green debt facility from Dutch development bank FMO to expand its pay-as-you-go e-motorbike financing model across East Africa.
• Venture Capital Flight to Quality: Startup funding across Africa holds steady entering H2 2026, but the data reveals a clear shift: investors are backing fewer, later-stage, and more established startups rather than spreading early-stage seed bets.
• Stablecoin Diaspora Rails: LemFi partners with BVNK to integrate stablecoin settlement infrastructure into its cross-border money transfer network, speeding up transaction times and cutting foreign exchange overhead for diaspora payments.

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