Verod-Kepple Africa Ventures (VKAV) announced that it has raised $43 million in its ongoing fundraising for its pan-African venture fund. The fund’s initial backers include institutions such as SBI Holdings, Toyota Tsusho Corporation, and individual investors such as Mr. Osamu Kaneda.
Launched in 2022, Verod-Kepple Africa Ventures (VKAV) is a joint venture between Verod Capital Management Limited (Verod Capital) and Kepple Africa Ventures. The Pan-African Venture Capital Fund focuses on Emerging Growth Stage Companies in Africa.
Some of the current investments include:
- Moove Africa (Multiple markets: smart vehicle finance for mobility entrepreneurs);
- NowPay (Egypt: financial wellness for employees);
- Koko Networks (Kenya: clean cooking technology company);
- Ceviant (Nigeria: treasury management and trade finance);
- Chari (Morocco: B2B e-commerce for FMCG);
- Shuttlers (Nigeria: Affordable and reliable shared mobility);
- Nawy (Egypt: end-to-end platform powering property transactions),
- Julaya (Francophone West Africa: neobank for businesses in Africa)
VKAV Partner Satoshi Shinada says, “We are convinced that there is a tremendous opportunity for technology to drive innovation and growth in Africa. We are excited to spearhead this transformation through our investment in category-defining startups, and to create a positive impact on the communities they serve.”
“We are incredibly grateful for the confidence that our world-class set of investors have in our team and differentiated value creation strategy. We look forward to deepening the successful long-term partnership we have with them,” adds VKAV Partner Ory Okolloh.
Eric Idiahi, Investment Committee & Portfolio Review Committee Member at VKAV and Partner at Verod Capital commented, “Verod Capital is delighted to partner with Kepple Africa Ventures. Their formidable experience combined with Verod’s strong performance track record investing in West Africa for 15 years, plus its history of returning capital to investors, provides a solid platform to showcase a unique model for venture capital in Africa that combines investment experience with hands-on support across the board – from fundraising, to fixing operations gaps, sourcing talent and accelerating expansion.
The portfolio companies of VKAV are catering not only to customers in Africa but also to a global audience, positively influencing over 800,000 individuals and small businesses across nine markets, six of which are in Africa. Additionally, these companies have generated more than 2,000 job opportunities.
2 Comments
Pingback: Nigerian ride-sharing startup Shuttlers raises $4 million in funding round led by VKAV - Innovation Village | Technology, Product Reviews, Business
Pingback: Kenyan insurtech startup mTek raises $1.25M for expansion in East African insurance markets - Innovation Village | Technology, Product Reviews, Business