Ventures Platform, one of Africa’s leading seed-stage venture capital firms, has announced the $64 million first close of its second fund, VP Pan-African fund II. The fund, which is targeting a final close of $75 million, will deepen the firm’s seed-stage investments and expand its scope to catalyse Series A rounds across the continent.
The fund is backed by a diverse group of global investors, with 70 per cent of commitments coming from the firm’s first institutional fund. New and returning investors include the International Finance Corporation (IFC), Standard Bank (South Africa), British International Investment (BII), Proparco, MSMEDA, and AfricaGrow.
Notably, the fund features a first-of-its-kind participation from Nigeria’s Investment in Digital and Creative Enterprises (iDICE) program, a government-backed initiative aimed at positioning Nigeria as a global hub for digital innovation.
A strategic shift to catalyse Series A rounds
With its new fund, Ventures Platform will strategically deepen its investment scope. While maintaining its foundation in pre-seed and seed-stage investments, the fund will now also lead and catalyse Series A investments to de-risk high-potential ventures and enhance value creation.
Geographically, the fund will consolidate the firm’s activities in Francophone Africa and accelerate its pan-African expansion into North Africa, while doubling down on its core markets, including Nigeria. The firm will prioritise ventures building “painkiller” solutions that address non-consumption and plug infrastructural gaps in key sectors such as fintech, healthtech, agritech, edtech, and AI.
Kola Aina, founding partner at Ventures Platform, commented: “The backing we’ve received from a diverse group of blue-chip partners is a powerful endorsement of Africa’s place as the purest, most asymmetric source for non-consensus alpha and transformative impact. The continent’s innovation opportunity is boundless, the needs are immense, but realising its full impact demands smart contextual capital, post-investment value creation, and a commitment to de-risking groundbreaking market-creating innovations.
“We believe Africa’s challenges are its greatest opportunities. By supporting resilient founders, we’re catalysing sustainable, market-creating innovations that will shape the future of the continent and plug gaps for the next billion.”
A new model for public-private partnership
The investment from Nigeria’s iDICE programme signals a significant new collaboration between public and private capital to fuel innovation on the continent.
Dr Olasupo Olusi, MD/CEO of the Bank of Industry, the implementing agency for iDICE, said: “As the implementing agency of the iDICE Programme, Bank of Industry is proud to be associated with Ventures Platform on this milestone achievement. By investing in Ventures Platform’s Fund II, which serves as iDICE’s Technology Equity Fund for Nigerian startups, we are deepening the Federal Government’s objective of upscaling the Nigerian technology and creative sectors by catalyzing strategic investments in high-growth, technology-enabled enterprises and the innovation ecosystem.”
This local backing is supported by major international development finance institutions (DFIs) and banks, who cited their confidence in the Ventures Platform team.
Nimalan Reddy, executive vice president at Standard Bank South Africa, said: “Standard Bank is proud to continue our partnership with Ventures Platform into Fund II. This is a testament to the quality and strength of the Ventures Platform team and our commitment to supporting high impact entrepreneurs across Africa.”
Françoise Lombard, chief executive officer of Proparco, added: “We are proud to renew our support to Ventures Platform… As our first fund investment under the EU-backed Choose Africa VC program, it underscores our confidence in the team and our continued commitment to backing the tech ecosystem in Nigeria and across Africa”.
Farid Fezoua, IFC global director for disruptive technologies, services and funds, also noted: “IFC’s investment in Ventures Platform Fund II will help early-stage startups move from proof-of-concept to growth, accelerating innovation in sectors like fintech, healthtech, edtech, and agtech, while also strengthening local value chains and creating quality jobs.”
A track record of backing unicorns
Since its inception in 2016, Ventures Platform has funded over 90 startups. Its portfolio includes some of the continent’s most successful fintechs, such as Moniepoint (Africa’s newest unicorn), Piggyvest, Raenest, LemFi, and Paystack (acquired by Stripe).
The firm’s portfolio companies have gained international recognition. Moniepoint, OmniRetail, and Thrive Agric were all named among the Financial Times’ 2024 list of Africa’s 25 fastest-growing companies.
