Like I discussed yesterday, one positive ongoing trend in the Nigerian health sector is the increase in private investment. And one of the major sources of private investment is venture capital. Even though the health sector is still lagging behind other sectors (such as fintech, agtech, and logistics) in the total amount and number of investments, we have seen an increase in VC investments in Nigeria over the past 5 years.

Today, I want to spotlight the 5 startups that have raised the most venture funding so far in the Nigerian health space (according to Crunchbase).

MPharma

MPharma started originally in Ghana and has since become one of the stand-out pharma-logistics startups in Nigeria; they currently operate across six countries. In addition to supplying essential medications for pharmacies and clinics, they also launched their Mutti rewards program to make these medications more affordable for patients. They have raised about $65M.

Reliance Health

Reliance Health started as a telemedicine platform (Kangpe) but has since evolved into a combination of a health insurance business (Reliance HMO) and primary care facilities (Reliance Family Clinics). They were a part of Y Combinator and have raised a total of $48M since they launched. They are currently expanding to Egypt.

54Gene

54Gene is a healthtech company working to ensure that African genomic data is included in global clinical research and drug development. In addition to their genomics work, they recently launched 7RiverLabs to increase access to molecular diagnostics across the country. They were also a part of Y Combinator and have raised a total of $44.7M.

African Health Holdings

African Health Holdings operates a network of hospitals across Ghana, Nigeria, and Kenya. They launched as a holding company of hospitals with the goal of acquiring hospital networks, but they are increasingly positioning themselves for venture capital investment. They recently acquired Lily Hospitals in Nigeria, which is one of the top-tier hospital networks in the country. They have raised a total of $42M.

Helium Health

Helium Health launched with their easy-to-use electronic medical record platform for hospitals but have since expanded to other digital platforms for health financing, revenue cycle management, and telemedicine for different health stakeholders. They have consolidated the EMR space by acquiring a number of smaller competitors. They are also a Y Combinator backed company and have raised $12.2M so far.