Afriwise, Africa’s fastest-growing legal-intelligence platform, has acquired LawExplorer, South Africa’s most established provider of regulatory monitoring and analysis tools. 
 
“This is not just an acquisition. It’s a strategic leap forward for how companies in Africa manage regulatory change,” said Steven De Backer, CEO and Founder of Afriwise. 

“With this move, we firmly establish Afriwise as the definitive one-stop platform for legal and regulatory intelligence in Africa while at the same time gaining a powerful foothold in the South African legal market. By integrating LawExplorer’s flagship Sentinel platform, trusted for over two decades for its precision and editorial rigour, we’re adding deep regulatory monitoring capabilities to our multi-country legal intelligence. Together, we’re delivering a uniquely powerful solution that enables companies to anticipate risk, understand the legal and regulatory framework and make confident decisions across jurisdictions."

This acquisition aligns LawExplorer’s strengths in South African regulatory analysis and regulatory savoir-faire with Afriwise’s continental vision and technology stack. 

LawExplorer’s editorial approach, with its focus on high-impact laws and regulatory interpretation, seamlessly complements Afriwise’s cutting-edge, pan-African platform that features structured laws, practical guidance, expert insights from 180+ law firms, and scalable monitoring tools. 

“Together, we are solving one of the most pressing challenges for companies operating in Africa: staying ahead of fast-changing regulatory environments while making sense of fragmented, and opaque legal frameworks and requirements,” said Beulah Lüttig, Director at LawExplorer. “This is where legal and regulatory intelligence becomes a true strategic asset.”

Afriwise’s acquisition of LawExplorer signals a bold shift: the future of regulatory intelligence in Africa is being built now and Afriwise is leading the charge. While many global legal-tech players continue to focus on mature markets, Afriwise is doubling down where legal complexity is greatest and clarity is most urgently needed.

Backed by international investors and partnerships with over 180 law firms across 40+ African jurisdictions, Afriwise has grown into the continent’s most trusted legal-intelligence provider. 

This move drives that vision forward, enhancing the platform with decades of structured regulatory data, proven monitoring workflows, and a highly specialised content team.

The combined business will operate under the Afriwise brand. 

LawExplorer’s team will join Afriwise, bringing critical expertise, products, and client relationships into the fold. Over the coming months, customers will benefit from an expanded range of tools, deeper regulatory insight, and an integrated user experience, starting in South Africa, and rapidly scaling across the continent.
 
Webber Wentzel acted as legal counsel to Afriwise.