Prominent venture capital firm, LoftyInc Capital, has announced the first close of its third fund. The $43 million Alpha fund, which happens to be the VC’s largest fund ever, came off the backing of major development finance institutions, including International Finance Corporation (IFC), Proparco, Dutch development bank FMO, AfricaGrow, and First Close Partners. Other limited partners that participated in the funding include Anava Funds of Funds, Egypt’s MSMEDA, European family offices, and many other African high-net-worth individuals.
The intention of the VC is to invest the new fund primarily into late seed and Series A stage startups across Africa, in line with their commitment to nurturing the continent’s tech ecosystem. As such, the fund will take a pan-African approach, with at least 30% allocated to East Africa, North Africa, and Francophone Africa. But the company will remain sector agnostic, keeping a wide net for attracting companies in the health tech, retail, deep tech, and artificial intelligence industries.
Speaking on their involvement in the funding, IFC’s Global Director for Disruptive Technologies, Services, and Funds, Farid Fezoua, stated that “the investment will provide seed-stage equity financing to tech startups across Africa, including nascent markets such as Francophone Africa”. He added that “The Alpha Fund will help develop the venture capital ecosystem across Africa and create a pipeline of investment projects that can attract later-stage investors to the region, which is underserved by global venture capital”, suggesting that the investment will also strengthen the venture capital ecosystem in Africa.
Historically, LoftyInc focused on pre-seed and seed investments, but it is shifting its strategy to bridge the gap for startups transitioning to the Series A stage. With a portfolio that already includes notable names such as Flutterwave, Moove, Reliance Health, TalentQL, OmniRetail, Ejara, Chefaa, Gahez Market, and Thndr, LoftyInc aims to support startups in overcoming the challenges of Series A fundraising.
Speaking on the rationale for this shift, LoftyInc’s Founder and Managing Partner, Idris Ayodeji Bello, explained that the company’s goal is to come in at seed, but its mandate is to help startups get to Series A. Essentially, they wish to position as the firm that gets startups over that hump.
In addition to expanding its investment focus, LoftyInc has strengthened its team with the appointments of Mariam Kamel and Kevin Simmons as general partners, both bringing valuable investment banking and venture capital experience to the organization. The firm’s previous fund managers, Marsha Wulff and Michael Oluwagbemi, will continue in their roles.
Bello also further highlighted the strategic vision behind the new fund: “In an exceptionally challenging fundraising climate, we are thrilled to have surpassed our first-close target, attracting new institutional investors while reaffirming the commitment of our existing backers. This latest raise positions us to scale our vision: empowering Afropreneurs who build transformative, tech-driven solutions for Africa’s everyday economy.”
LoftyInc’s strategic shift to later-stage investments comes at a critical time as the African startup ecosystem is currently experiencing a resurgence in funding, mirroring global venture capital trends. The new fund aims to not only support promising startups but also provide faster exit opportunities for Series A investors, further solidifying LoftyInc’s role as a key player in Africa’s venture capital landscape.
