AfricInvest and Cathay Innovation Rounds off Close of €110M Pan-African Venture Fund

The ultimate close of Cathay Innovation and AfricInvest’s joint Pan-African Venture Fund, Cathay AfricInvest Innovation Fund, totaled €110 million. AfricInvest is an African multi-asset investing platform.

The fund is supported by LPs like the EIB, AfricaGrow, FMO, Bpifrance, Triodos Investment Management, Proparco, SIFEM, BIO, and others, as well as a diverse group of well-known investors from around the world, including high-net-worth individuals from Europe, Africa, and the Middle East and development finance institutions.

After the fund’s closing, the CAIF team will concentrate on funding the most promising early- to growth-stage firms that are transforming African lives through innovative, tech-enabled goods and services.

The fund invests in entrepreneurs across a variety of industries, including Fintech, Mobility, HealthTech, EdTech, AI, Digital Content, and AgTech, with initial check amounts ranging from €1-10M for growth-stage and up to €1M for chosen seed-stage tickets. Ten well-known businesses operating across the continent have received funding from CAIF since its founding in October 2019. These companies include 54gene, OZÉ, Migo, PalmPay, Heetch, KaiOS, Boomplay, Aerobotics, and WhereIsMyTransport. Most recently, the firm co-led the $8M Series A round of financing for the EdTech business GoMyCode in Tunisia.

“AfricInvest’s partnership with Cathay Innovation brings to Africa global expertise in the innovation space along with a strong network in Europe, the US, and Asia, all helping to build bridges between Africa and the rest of the world and allowing the fund’s investees to grow into regional and global champions,” says Cathay Innovation. Yassine Oussaifi, a partner at AfricInvest and the co-head of CAIF, said.

Startups are crucial in creating the new digital infrastructure required for developing regions like Africa to reimagine industry and society in the twenty-first century as technology scales and provides substantial upgrades to the world’s people. Mingpo Cai, the founder and chairman of Cathay Capital and Cathay Innovation, added, “We’re proud to partner with the AfricInvest team, which connects the entire African continent with tech hubs around the world, in a shared mission of accelerating the transition to a more digital, sustainable, and inclusive economy for Africa and beyond.

The multi-strategy platform of AfricInvest has actively strengthened the private equity and venture capital ecosystem in Africa since it was established in 1994. In order to provide local hands-on support, build portfolio synergies, and aid in geographic expansion, CAIF relies on AfricInvest’s extensive pool of resources from its network, rich investment expertise, and physical presence across 11 regions through offices including Abidjan, Algier, Cairo, Casablanca, Lagos, Nairobi, and Tunis. AfricInvest has over 200 portfolio companies spread across 25 African countries in a variety of high-growth industries, of which 106 have exited. To date, AfricInvest has raised over $2 billion AUM across 21 funds and enjoys the support of both African and foreign investors who have a long-term commitment to the company’s success.

Cathay Innovation, a top venture capital business that was established in 2015, offers entrepreneurs help from a worldwide ecosystem spanning North America, Europe, Asia, Latin America, and Africa. With access to new markets, priceless industry expertise, and early introductions to possible partners, the global platform unites technology investment across continents, investors, entrepreneurs, and top businesses. With offices on three continents and more than €2 billion in assets under management, Cathay Innovation has a proven track record of investing in startups that are accelerating the sustainable and digital transformation of business and society through more than 120 global investments, including 19 unicorns.

CAIF provides assistance to promising businesses in developing and scaling cutting-edge technologies that promote inclusive socioeconomic progress in Africa. With client firms growing their worldwide footprint to over 21 locations throughout the region, the fund has so far demonstrated significant traction and scalability. Over 136 million Africans have been reached with inclusive and digital solutions provided by the Fund’s portfolio companies, ensuring that every $1 invested on the continent benefits multiple users. With its current holdings, the Fund has established and maintained more than 1,400 direct jobs, with an average of 35% of the workforce being female.

Innovative technologies that promote inclusive socio-economic progress in Africa are built and scaled by promising companies with the assistance of CAIF. The fund has so far demonstrated incredible traction and scalability, with portfolio firms growing their worldwide footprint to over 21 markets throughout the continent. Over the past few years, the portfolio firms of the Fund have also amassed a considerable impact at scale, reaching over 136 million Africans with inclusive and digital solutions, meaning that every dollar invested on the continent benefits multiple users. Over 1,400 direct employment have been generated and maintained by the Fund with its current portfolio, with women making up an average of 35% of the workforce.

The fund will continue to assist African entrepreneurs in scaling their cutting-edge technologies across the continent and beyond, as well as assist international entrepreneurs in their expansion into Africa. It is operated by a group of investment professionals based in the hubs of VC innovation throughout Africa.

“The Cathay AfricInvest Innovation Fund was created with the belief that tech-enabled entrepreneurs in Africa are bridging significant socioeconomic disparities via innovation and creativity. We see this funding opportunity as a way to provide excellent entrepreneurs seeking to innovate and better lives in Africa with strategic support. According to Khaled Ben Jilani, Senior Partner of AfricInvest and co-head of CAIF, “CAIF has now reached over 100 million people through job creation and inclusion, but there are still millions throughout the continent with little economic resources on our radar.”

With the acceleration of digital transformation across all sectors over the past ten years, the venture capital industry in Africa has experienced exponential expansion. As a result, the sector is evolving into the innovation ecosystem with the quickest rate of growth globally. A new milestone of over $5 billion in venture financing was accomplished by the ecosystem in 2021, surpassing the previous two years combined and nearly tripling that of 2020. The last round places CAIF in a strong position to further up its efforts to concentrate on innovative and scalable post-revenue companies based in, or with a focus on, Africa. CAIF is one of the largest early- to growth-stage Pan-African innovation funds. As a result, CAIF will maintain its leading position in the fast developing VC scene on the continent.