(NAIROBI, KENYA) – Kenyan startup Twiga Foods has entered administration amid financial turmoil, joining a group of 13 once promising ventures that have collapsed over the past five years after raising capital in excess of KES 93 billion ($719 million / GBP 532 million).
The business failures, including that of Koko Networks, Lipa Later and Copia, show the heavy losses that financiers and investors, mostly venture and private equity firms based in Western countries, have suffered.
The collapse of the young businesses has also rendered thousands of Kenyans jobless, with the firms typically engaging in a hiring blitz with a plan to gain scale and reach profitability.
Twiga Foods operated a business to business (B2B) marketplace that sourced farm produce directly from farmers and delivered it to urban retailers.
Mohamed Mohamed of Maawiy Financial Advisory Limited was appointed administrator of GT Flow Limited, formerly known as Twiga Foods One Limited, on 17th August.
Twiga Foods attracted $185.4 million (KES 24 billion / GBP 137 million) from investors, according to the global business database Crunchbase. Its backers include the French investment firm Creadev.
It is the latest in a series of heavily funded Kenyan startups that have collapsed, been placed under administration, or wound up after struggling to raise more money, achieve profitability, or cope with difficult market conditions.
A Business analysis shows Twiga Foods is among 13 ventures to collapse in the past five years after collectively raising $717.5 million (KES 93 billion / GBP 531 million) from investors.
E-commerce startup Copia, which raised $123 million (KES 15.9 billion / GBP 91 million), failed to secure additional funding as 2024 began, putting it under financial strain.
Copia provided a platform for rural consumers to order products delivered through agents.
In May 2024, the company cut more than 1,000 jobs and warned of a looming shutdown before being placed under administration. Copia was backed by the Kenyan venture capital firm Enza Capital and UK’s Lightrock.
Clean cooking startup Koko Networks, which had raised more than $100 million (KES 13 billion / GBP 74 million), was placed under administration in February 2026 on the brink of bankruptcy.
Koko Networks sold heavily subsidised bioethanol stoves and fuel to low income households.
The company recouped losses through carbon credit sales in global compliance carbon markets.
Koko Networks filed for administration after Kenyan authorities refused to issue it a letter of approval to sell carbon credits, leaving over 700 direct staff and thousands of refilling agents jobless.
Its investors include Microsoft’s Climate Innovation Fund and French asset manager Mirova.
Another casualty has been Lipa Later, a technology credit venture that raised $16.6 million (KES 2.1 billion / GBP 12.3 million) and was placed under administration in March 2025 amid undisclosed financial woes.
Lipa Later was backed by Cauris Finance and Lateral Frontiers and had over 200 staff and a network of about 1,000 agents.
Gro Intelligence, an agriculture and climate data company, raised $117.7 million (KES 15.2 billion / GBP 87 million) before shutting down operations in June 2024.
The company provided AI powered data analytics, satellite imaging, and predictive models focused on agriculture and climate risk.
In March 2024, the company laid off 60% of its workforce before shutting down operations after failing to secure sufficient capital.
Carmaker Mobius Motors shut down operations in August 2024 and sent over 40 workers home amid mounting debts and a multi million shilling tax dispute, which pushed it into voluntary liquidation.
The company sought to build affordable, rugged SUVs designed for African roads.
By August 2020, it had a debt of KES 649.2 million ($5 million / GBP 3.7 million) and a shareholders’ deficit of KES 389.1 million ($3 million / GBP 2.2 million). The company had raised $56 million (KES 7.3 billion / GBP 41.5 million) from investors such as Kepple Africa Ventures.
Mobius was later acquired in bankruptcy in 2025 by Silver Box, a Middle Eastern firm.
Agritech startup iProcure, which raised $17.1 million (KES 2.2 billion / GBP 12.7 million), was placed under administration after filing for bankruptcy in April 2024.
The business to business (B2B) platform connected agricultural input suppliers directly with local agro dealers.
Logistics startup Sendy, which raised $24.7 million (KES 3.2 billion / GBP 18.3 million), closed in 2023 after running out of money and failing to find a buyer, sending home over 200 staff.
Sendy operated an app linking delivery drivers with customers. Its investors include the Toyota Tsusho Corporation.
Another B2B e-commerce startup, MarketForce, raised $84.1 million (KES 10.9 billion / GBP 62.3 million) before winding up in April 2024.
The company enabled informal retailers to order fast moving consumer goods from distributors and manufacturers. It was backed by V8 Capital Partners, among others.
Kune Foods shut down in June 2022, barely a year after starting operations. It offered ready to eat affordable meals and had raised $1 million (KES 129 million / GBP 740,000).
Wefarm, which raised $32 million (KES 4.1 billion / GBP 23.7 million), shut down in 2022 due to difficult market conditions and scaling challenges. Wefarm operated a farmer to farmer digital network that enabled users to share information via SMS.
E-commerce firm Zumi shut down in March 2023 after raising $1 million (KES 129 million / GBP 740,000).
Notify Logistics also shut down in August 2022 after raising $374,000 (KES 48.4 million / GBP 277,000).
The failures have come despite large investments in Kenyan startups over the past decade.
In 2025, Kenya was Africa’s leading venture capital destination, when startups raised $984 million (KES 127.5 billion / GBP 729 million), according to the startup funding tracker Africa: The Big Deal.
For venture capitalists, however, startup collapses are factored into the funding strategy, where a small number of successful companies pay for a high rate of failures.