Ventures Platform Closes $83 Million Fund for Pan-African Expansion

The firm intends to deploy the new capital over the next three to four years, with individual check sizes reaching up to $3 million. While the first $46 million fund, raised in 2022, concentrated largely on pre-seed and seed rounds within Nigeria, this second vehicle has already backed five companies across Kenya, South Africa, and Egypt. The firm remains focused on sectors like fintech, healthcare, and SaaS, specifically seeking businesses where AI can fundamentally reshape cost structures and market economics.

Securing this capital required navigating an investment climate far more demanding than the one encountered during the firm’s first raise. Limited partners are shifting their focus toward capital efficiency, governance, and tangible liquidity rather than rapid, successive funding rounds. Aina noted that the industry conversation has evolved from an abstract interest in the African opportunity to a rigorous interrogation of a manager's specific ability to generate returns. Despite this caution, 70% of the original investors returned to back the second fund, including the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, Norfund, and the Ashesi University Foundation.