Nigeria’s Ventures Platform has secured the first close of a $40 million pan-African fund

One of Africa’s most active early-stage tech investors, Nigeria-based Ventures Platform, has announced the first close of a US$40 million pan-African fund that will expand its portfolio and double down on winners.

Since its inception in 2016, Ventures Platform has served as a partner and conduit for international funds and stakeholders looking for a dependable and experienced partner in Africa. Seamless HR, Piggy Vest, Mono, and Paystack are among the 69 startups in the firm’s portfolio, and the company has made 28 investments in 2021 alone.

Its new US$40 million fund will invest in “market-creating innovations,” with the first close led by the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA) and participation from existing investors as well as some new leading names from Africa’s corporate and tech ecosystems. They include UAC Nigeria, VFD Group, Gbenga Oyebode of Paystack, and Shola Akinlade of Paystack, as well as global investors such as Y Combinator’s Michael Seibel and Adam Draper.

The fund’s latest capital infusion also puts it in a strong position to double down on existing investments in its category-leading portfolio in future rounds. A second close of the fund is planned for early 2022, with participation from select global Institutional Investors and DFIs.

“Over the last six years, we’ve backed nearly 70 of Africa’s most compelling tech companies, building a robust portfolio that has included one of our sector’s largest exits to date through Paystack last year.” As the incredible momentum in African tech continues to build, it is attracting unprecedented global attention from traditional and institutional investors, and we’re thrilled to welcome aboard some world-class, strategic stakeholders to our fund,” said Kola Aina, founder and general partner at Ventures Platform.

“As operators, we understand what it takes to build a successful business on the continent, and we’ve spent years partnering with visionary founders to effectively address some of Africa’s most difficult problems – now is the time to go even further.” We’re fully leveraging our deep expertise in navigating the nuances of the African market, and as we move forward, we’re developing a global network of LPs in more established markets such as Europe, the United States (US), and Asia, many of whom partner with us because of our track record of backing winners, and they value our on-the-ground experience and access to opportunities, which is critical for generating returns.”

Ventures Platform is now positioned to fund follow-on rounds of successful startups building market-creating innovations across pre-seed, seed, and Series A stages in sectors such as fintech, e-health, enterprise SAAS, digital infrastructure, and more, with ticket sizes ranging up to US$1 million. As part of its efforts to broaden its expertise, the firm has appointed Seni Sulyman, ex-VP at Andela, ex-COO at Bellhop, and founder of Black Ops, as Venture Partners.