Verod-Kepple Africa Ventures Secures $60M Fund, Boosting African Growth-Stage Enterprises

After closing its first fund at $60 million, Verod-Kepple Africa Ventures (VKAV) intends to support up to 21 growth-stage enterprises throughout the continent.

After receiving new funding from investors such as Taiyo Holdings, C2C Global Education Japan, and Nigeria's SCM Capital (previously Sterling Capital Markets Limited), the pan-African venture capital reached a significant milestone.

The fund, which is supported by a number of investors, including Japanese institutional investors like SBI Holdings, Toyota Tsusho Corporation, Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank, Japan International Corporation Agency, and the Japan ICT Fund, saw its first and second closes in 2022 and 2018, respectively, before the most recent capital infusion.

In the midst of an ongoing investment slump, Verod-Kepple is the most recent African venture capitalist to secure funding, which enables it to supply Series A and B entrepreneurs with critical financing even while local capital pools for growth-stage businesses continue to be scarce.

Ory Okolloh, a partner at VKAV, told TechCrunch, "Over the last few years, we have seen a growth in pre-seed and seed funds. We felt there are not enough funds at the growth stage of investing to get these companies to the next level in terms of scale, exits, or even being around as sustainable profitable businesses."

She also added, "Our focus is Series A and B but we have the ability to go earlier to pre-Series A if we think it is a good opportunity. We think there’s still a need for more growth-stage capital with locally based investors."

Source: Annie Njanja / TechCrunch