Spark Accelerator

The Spark Accelerator is a collaborative initiative by Safaricom, M-PESA Africa, and Sumitomo Corporation and Implemented By iHub LTD. It is a platform designed to empower bold and visionary founders of early-stage startups to grow and scale their businesses.

No. Whilst the Spark Fund was premised around providing funding to early-stage startups, the Spark Accelerator seeks to broaden the scope of support to early-stage startups, that fit the criteria, to include technology and product development support, access to market and access to capital.

https://www.safaricom.co.ke/media-center-landing/terms-and-conditions/safaricom-spark-accelerator

Startups based in Kenya, particularly those building solutions in highlighted focus areas, are encouraged to apply. The program is open to diverse teams with the requisite expertise, ready to accept equity participation, and with existing products and post-revenue.

Startups based in Kenya, particularly those building solutions in highlighted focus areas, are encouraged to apply. The program is open to diverse teams with the requisite expertise, ready to accept equity participation, and with existing products and post-revenue and Pre-Series A. If you’re a female founder we strongly encourage you to apply.

The Spark Accelerator focuses on startups in highlighted sectors, including:

a. Embedded Financial Services:

i. Insure Tech

ii. Fintech as a Service –(enabling other businesses to offer financial services)

iii. Agency as a Service - Enabling agents to sell digital products

b. SME Productivity Tools:

i. E-commerce enablement

ii. POS and acceptance solutions

iii. Merchant loyalty and rewards

iv. Inventory and sales efficiency

v. Working capital management

c. Fintech powered by AI:

i. Wealth management

ii. Fraud management

iii. Reg-tech

iv. Scoring

d. Content:

i. Local gaming content

ii. Long and short-form video content

iii. Mobile advertisement Definition

e. Others:

i. Personal financial management

ii. Carbon Finance

While these are highlighted, we encourage startups from aligned industries to apply, valuing diversity and innovation.

To apply for the program go to https://safaricom.co.ke/sparkaccelerator , click on apply now and follow the requisite steps

The program is expected to start in March 2024 and will run for 14 weeks. The program timeline will be communicated to selected startups during the onboarding process. We aim to provide comprehensive support to ensure long-term success.

We are committed to supporting up to 10 outstanding startups

Participants in the Spark Accelerator Program will gain access to a range of benefits, including Safaricom and M-PESA Africa product and technology support, mentorship, access to capital, and go-to-market support. The program is anchored around Safaricom's goal of transforming lives. Participants can expect to get various benefits including, but not limited to:

i. Expert advisory from experts across Product development, talent management, marketing and sales.

ii. Access to a community to test out your products.

iii. Coaching and mentoring by successful founders and experts.

iv. Networking with other founders to build amazing solutions in Fintech.

v. Exposure to a vibrant network of investors.

The program is designed for Pre-Series A startups, indicating that applicants should have an existing product, post-revenue, and demonstrate potential for significant growth. You must have a product-fit solution with verifiable users. Applicants should have a balanced team and be passionate about Fintech and the highlighted sectors. Female-founded/led companies are strongly encouraged to apply.

Yes, the Spark Accelerator Program targets startups ready to accept equity participation.

Startups in the Spark Accelerator Program will have access to some of Safaricom's select technology assets, including Daraja and M-PESA Africa Open APIs, and more. This also includes integration and development support. Additionally, AWS Activate Credits are provided.

The program will focus on deepening the capacity of Fintech and Content startups through carefully curated dedicated business support activities across four key verticals:

i. Product: Access to fintech & product development experts and a community to test your solutions.

ii. Talent: Establishing quality and accessible talent you can leverage while building internal capacity.

iii. Distribution: Developing and executing a go-to-market strategy to acquire additional users. We will work with stakeholders to facilitate market access support.

iv. Funding: Support the startups to be investment-ready and position them to raise additional funding.

Once we receive your application, we will screen your solution for fit and alignment with the program focus areas, before assessing for scalability, potential and other criteria. The final stage is an interview process where our team will engage with you and conduct due diligence before a final selection.

February 2024. We are keeping the applications open for one month from 12th January 2024 – 16th February 2024 therefore qualifying teams are encouraged to apply as soon as possible.

All we require now is a video of you, the founder, speaking about your solution and links to your pitch deck and product demo. Do remember to upload your video so we can access it easily to review.

While there is no strict team size requirement, a diverse team and multiskilled with the requisite expertise in the sector is encouraged.

No, knowing someone or being a member at Safaricom, M-PESA Africa, Sumitomo Corporation or iHub is not a requirement for eligibility. The Spark Accelerator Program is open to all qualifying startups meeting the specified criteria.

The participants in the Spark Accelerator Program are required not to take part in other accelerator program for startups at the same time.

For any additional questions or more information about the Spark Accelerator Program, please send an email to sparkaccelerator@safaricom.co.ke We're here to help and provide the information you need.