On a radio show last Thursday, the host asked me a question: how did Flutterwave do it?

One of Flutterwave’s responses is that they grew at an average rate of 226% annually between 2018 and 2020. The growth might have benefitted from the rise in online payments due to the pandemic. But it reflects the increasing opportunity for tech to impact Africa and return value for bold actors.

We think this has sent a surge of inspiration to dreamers across the continent, from Bamako to Banjul, as well as wealth managers in Boston and Brussels.

Brace for the rush

The continent where the median age is 19, where 60% of the population is under age 25 and expected to double by 2050 seems the best place to channel new money in hopes of best returns. Africa’s Gen-Z digital natives are driving the adoption of savings and investment apps, as well as products from neobanks like Carbon and Kuda.

[ Read: How Kuda designs banking for young Nigerians ]

Demography is not destiny. An older generation of policymakers that currently controls regulatory levers can significantly slow progress if it feels threatened.

But the evidence of the last decade’s startup boom and unicorn trickle is that Africans will not shirk the responsibility of solving the continent’s problems.

Flutterwave’s founders and staff rose to the challenge, shooting the company into a vaunted elite as Africa’s fastest ever unicorn. The countdown to those who follow in their footsteps has begun.

This isn’t surprising.

Africa’s tech industry is relatively young, there’s generally a lack of enabling infrastructure and the markets are slightly more complex. Consequently, funding into the continent is low compared with other regions as investors are cautious about the opportunities.

African startups reportedly received $701.5m 2020. It is an impressive increase from 2019 but it barely scratches the surface.

In Latin America, the fintech sector alone received $8.1b in funding. The frequency at which startups attain unicorn status is directly proportional to the volume of funding, especially late-stage capital flowing into a region.

Unicorn =/= Invincible

Becoming a unicorn does not shield a startup from recording losses. Globally, a dozen unicorns who had gone public or were likely to, recorded combined losses of $14 billion in 2018.

After Jumia became a unicorn in 2016, it recorded a couple of losses that dropped its valuation by 75% to $250m. While this might have been because of internal issues, it is worth noting that Africa is still a tough place to do business. Becoming a unicorn is not a magical step to being immune to losses.

A fixation on wanting to attain unicorn status could be unproductive for African startups especially for those in the early years. Interswitch became a unicorn 17 years after it was founded; Fawry, Jumia and Flutterwave were 12, 4 and 5 years respectively. Age is not the perfect indicator of growth but startups must go at their own pace.

Infact, some have proposed gazelles as an alternative to unicorns. A gazelle is under less venture capital pressure to blitzscale, but grows by a consistent revenue margin year-on-year.

So while the unicorn wave is to be encouraged, it should not be the prime indicator of African tech’s maturity and progress. For a continent known for its unique wildlife range, we should explore all the various exotic options of what defines success for African startups.

Download TechCabal’s Nigeria Fintech Future report here and get other TechCabal’s reports here and send us your custom research requests via tcinsights@bigcabal.com.

Written by Michelle Adesina