

Africa
Carry1st Raises $4.0 Million to Catalyze Mobile Gaming in Africa
Carry1st has raised a Series Seed round of US$2.5 million led by CRE Venture Capital with participation from Perivoli Innovations, Chandaria Capital, Lateral Capital, Transsion’s Future Hub, and Kam Kronenberg III, among others. This round brings its total capital raised to $4.0 million. Proceeds will go to recruiting top-tier talent, investing in platform technology, and publishing new content. Pardon Makumbe, Managing Partner at CRE, and Henry Lowenfels, Chief Product Officer of One Team Partners (former Scopely SVP), will join the board.
Carry1st is the leading mobile games publisher serving the first generation of African smartphone users. Since launching in 2019, the company has reached over 1.5 million users across the region. Carry1st Trivia was ranked the #1 free-to-play Android game in Nigeria and Kenya; and was named the Best Media & Entertainment Solution for 2019. The company plans to partner with international studios to launch multiple games in 2020 and scale its audience to over a million monthly active users.
“Social gaming is the largest and fastest-growing form of mobile media, grossing more than three times all other app categories combined. Our mission is to bring this world of interactive content to Africa and likewise to connect Africa to the world,” said Cordel Robbin-Coker, Carry1st CEO and former Carlyle dealmaker. “Our belief is that building a local publisher, with differentiated tech and operating capabilities across marketing, distribution, and monetization is the way to be this bridge. We are pleased to partner with CRE and our investor group to accelerate this vision.”
Founded by Cordel Robbin-Coker, Lucy Hoffman, and Tinotenda Mundangepfupfu, the company addresses key challenges in Africa for consumers and content producers alike. Carry1st serves the world’s fastest-growing market, set to add over 350 million smartphone users and increase data consumption by 17x by 2025. By providing tailored content, localized engagement, and payments solutions, Carry1st aspires to accelerate the growth of the African mobile content market, which is already projected to increase by 400% over 5 years.
CRE Partner, Pardon Makumbe said: “We are excited to partner with the world-class team at Carry1st to take the pain out of distributing and monetizing games across Africa. The continent is young, vibrant, and mobile-first — by focusing on the building blocks, we believe Carry1st is well-positioned to define the category, and catalyse the development of the industry for Africa’s over 1.3 billion consumers.”
Lucy Hoffman, Carry1st VP of Operations added: “It’s really exciting to be part of developing a new industry in an emerging region. In doing so, we will stimulate thousands of jobs and drive digital inclusion. When people come online for the first time, they want to connect with people and have fun. In these unusual times we are reminded of the power of games to delight, to educate, and ultimately to unite.”
SOURCE: Carry1st
Africa
SportPesa Sponsors National 7s Circuit 2025

Leading online gaming firm SportPesa announced a 15 million (116.207,00 US Dollar) title sponsorship package for the 2025 National Sevens Circuit (NSC) taking place across five towns from July to September.
The sponsorship, renewed for the third consecutive year, will see the gaming giant retain the title sponsorship with the circuit once again being named the SportPesa National Sevens Circuit.
Speaking during the launch held at the Kenya Rugby Union (KRU) headquarters at the RFUEA Grounds, SportPesa Public Relations and Advertising Manager Willis Ojwang reiterated the firm’s commitment to supporting the local action on top of their existing sponsorship with the men’s national rugby 7s side.
“On behalf of SportPesa, our commitment to rugby goes without saying. Our CEO Ronald Karauri says no one does sports better than we do. For 3 years in a row, SportPesa has been not only part and parcel of supporting the national rugby team but also the local circuit and the impact has been unmatched,” he said.
During the launch, Ojwang also announced an exciting package that will see the sponsorship cater for top-notch livestreaming of the action in all six legs which will help viewers from around the world to follow the action and give exposure to players.
“Last year we had an existing structure but this year we are working on the livestream and broadcast area. For the first time, we will have a streamlined livestream experience just to expose the players and to cater to all the fans worldwide,” he announced.
KRU Chairperson Harriet Okatch expressed gratitude towards SportPesa for walking the journey with rugby and for coming on board as the sponsors for the circuit.
“Your support couldn’t have come at a better time. This circuit marks the beginning of our journey to qualify both our men’s and women’s teams for HSBC Tier 1 status next year. We are more than confident than ever that Kenya will rise again on the global stage,” she noted.
KRU Director of Rugby Paul Odera emphasized on the importance of the circuit which will be used as a pathway to the national teams.
“It has been exciting and interesting to prepare for this year’s circuit which began with a seminar with national team coaches and players on expectations for them on pathways to the national team.”
The post SportPesa Sponsors National 7s Circuit 2025 appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
Africa
VeliTech Announces Strategic Partnership with Jambobet

VeliTech has announced a strategic partnership with Jambobet, a rising iGaming brand in the African market. Offering a wide range of gaming categories, Jambobet will strengthen its position with the VeliTech powerful content and tech stack. This partnership underscores VeliTech continued expansion across key African markets, delivering technology built for bandwidth, backed by experience and battle-tested for scale.
As part of the collaboration, Jambobet will harness two flagship VeliTech offerings:
VeliGames – a game aggregation powerhouse that delivers not only an extensive portfolio of 35,000+ games from 160+ providers, but also a suite of operator-focused tools including transfer wallet, a Unified API with Reward API and reverse integration support, lightweight architecture, tailored pricing and more.
VeliPlay – instant games provider delivering high-impact content optimised for emerging markets. Each title features innovative mechanics and compelling narratives that maximise player engagement and drive exceptional retention rates.
“With VeliPlay action-packed titles and VeliGames extensive portfolio and powerful tools, Jambobet is set to deliver a thrilling, localised experience that African players will love. This collaboration highlights the VeliTech ability to provide iGaming essentials tailored to regional needs,” said Giorgi Aleksidze, CEO at VeliTech.
“What we love about VeliTech is how simple yet powerful their setup is. We get the games our players love, especially crash titles, plus all the tools to engage them in real time, without needing a massive tech team. Everything is lightweight, flexible, and built for markets like ours. This partnership sets us up to grow fast and keep things exciting for our audience,” said Miss Joy Annette, Product Manager at Jambobet.
The post VeliTech Announces Strategic Partnership with Jambobet appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
Africa
Rise & Hustle enhances platform with proprietary AI-powered Rise Core solution

Rise & Hustle, Africa’s next-gen tap-to-earn gaming operator, has rolled out its proprietary AI-powered Rise Core solution to enhance performance, personalisation, and protection.
Officially launched last week in Nigeria, Rise & Hustle is a rewards-based mobile street game series built on its PlayZuzu Gaming platform. Rise Core uses advanced algorithms to stop fraud, identifying and preventing everything from Cost Per Acquisition (CPA) manipulation to gameplay exploitation. The solution excels at fortifying cybersecurity, proactively identifying threats to safeguard player data and platform integrity.
From a creative standpoint, Rise Core will generate and refine in-game visuals and imagery to immerse players in the experience of rising from Hustler to Kingpin. Furthermore, the solution is trained to analyse user behaviour and recommend content in real time to drive engagement and retention.
Deploying Rise Core at the heart of Rise & Hustle’s platform instantly heightens mobile-first gaming by combining entertainment, integrity, and progressive tech in one world.
Rise & Hustle CEO and co-founder Josh Jones commented: “Integrating our in-house Rise Core solution into the Rise & Hustle platform puts AI front and centre of all we’re building. It will help us build quicker, safer, and smarter than anyone else in the space. Players’ security is paramount, and backed by sophisticated AI we’re in position to detect and prevent fraud in real-time. We have the ability to seamlessly personalise content not just in design, but based on player interests. Rise Core is more than just a tool – it’s our edge in creating player-first experiences for Africa’s mobile-native generation.”
The post Rise & Hustle enhances platform with proprietary AI-powered Rise Core solution appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
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