After the Hype Cycle: Why African Tech's Next Chapter Demands a Different Playbook

A new generation of African founders has moved beyond proving the market exists, yet the capital structures financing their growth still largely originate in the West, bringing return expectations, fund timelines, and risk appetites that weren't designed for African market realities. This panel examines what building and funding durable businesses actually looks like in 2026: which sectors are generating real returns, how founders are navigating capital efficiency where patient local capital remains scarce, how exit pathways are evolving, and what the maturation of local ecosystem builders tells us about a continent that is increasingly writing its own next chapter.