South African AI company Locstat secures $2.9M to expand graph-powered analytics platform into european markets

Cape Town-based startup brings African-tested fraud detection and real-time data intelligence technology to UK and EU financial institutions

Locstat, an artificial intelligence company based in South Africa, has closed a €2.5 million ($2.9 million) pre-Series A financing round to fund market entry across the United Kingdom and European Union while reinforcing its position in African markets where the technology was developed and proven.

Established in 2016 in South Africa, Locstat provides graph-powered AI and event processing technology for continuous analysis and visualization of real-time and static data from multiple sources. The platform enables organizations to uncover previously hidden insights by analyzing relationships between data points and their broader context, enriching datasets used for analytics and decision-making processes.

The South African company's technology supports critical business functions including fraud detection, customer journey mapping, rules engine operations, and geo-spatial analytics, all executed in real-time processing environments. Locstat was founded to address challenges associated with "big, fast, connected data," developing solutions that have demonstrated strong product-market fit within African financial services sectors.

The company has established a track record helping banks and fintech companies across the continent combat fraud, strengthen anti-money laundering compliance, and drive customer value through connected intelligence platforms. Having validated outcomes in South African and broader African markets characterized by complex transactional environments, Locstat will now leverage its pre-Series A capital to scale operations in Europe.

The funding round was led by Portugal Gateway Fund with participation from ANZA Capital. The capital will support brand development, revenue generation, and partnership building across European markets, while simultaneously expanding Locstat's South African team and partner network in its home market.

"Locstat was built to turn complex, connected data into decisions that make a real impact," said Ryno Goosen, co-founder and CEO of Locstat. "This investment allows us to take a home-grown South African technology, that has been tested in some of the most complex transactional environments in Africa, and bring it to new markets at pace. We'll expand our team, deepen our partner ecosystem, and keep investing in the platform so customers can see risks sooner, act faster, and create value in ways legacy systems can't."

The investment reflects Portugal Gateway Fund's strategy of backing expansion-stage businesses with defensible competitive advantages and global scaling potential. As lead investor, PGF focuses on companies that have achieved product-market fit in their initial markets and demonstrate readiness for international expansion.

"We are delighted to support Locstat with this investment, backing a talented management team and an exceptional technology with global potential," said Erik van Veen, general partner at Portugal Gateway Fund. "Our commitment reflects our confidence in Locstat's ability to drive innovation in graph database software and to expand successfully into Europe. We look forward to working closely with the team as they scale the business and build towards a successful Series A round in the coming two years."

Graph-powered analytics platforms like Locstat's technology address increasing complexity in financial transaction monitoring and risk assessment. Traditional relational database architectures struggle to analyze interconnected data at the speed and scale required by modern financial institutions, particularly when detecting sophisticated fraud patterns that exploit relationships between entities across multiple systems and geographies.

Locstat's South African origins provide unique validation for its technology. African financial services markets present particularly challenging environments for fraud detection and compliance systems due to diverse payment infrastructures, cross-border transaction flows, mobile money integration, and sophisticated fraud schemes that exploit system gaps. Technologies proven effective in these contexts often demonstrate superior capabilities when deployed in less complex markets.

The company's expansion into European markets follows growing demand from financial institutions for real-time analytics platforms capable of processing complex, interconnected datasets. European banking regulations including anti-money laundering directives and payment services directives require institutions to maintain sophisticated transaction monitoring and customer due diligence systems, creating demand for advanced analytics platforms like Locstat's offering.

The pre-Series A funding positions Locstat for a Series A round anticipated within the next two years, which would provide capital for deeper market penetration and potential expansion into additional geographic regions beyond Europe and Africa.