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Lagos-based Ventures Platform, one of Africa’s most active early-stage venture capital firms, has raised US$64 million for its second fund, with a target final close of US$75 million, founding partner Kola Aina told TechCrunch.
Among the investors is the Nigerian government, participating through its Investment in Digital and Creative Enterprises (iDICE) program — the first time the government has invested in a venture capital fund.
The move is significant for Nigeria’s rapidly growing startup ecosystem, which hosts the largest number of unicorns in Africa.
Other limited partners (LPs) include IFC, British International Investment (BII), Proparco, Standard Bank, MSMEDA, and AfricaGrow, along with European family offices such as Alder Tree Investment and prominent global backers like Michael Seibel, former CEO of Y Combinator.
Aina noted that 70 percent of investors from Ventures Platform’s previous fund returned for this new vehicle.
Founded in 2016, Ventures Platform has built a strong reputation for identifying breakout startups early in Nigeria’s tech ecosystem.
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The firm launched its first institutional fund in 2022, a $46 million vehicle focused on pre-seed and seed-stage investments.
With its second fund, Ventures Platform plans to expand into Series A investments, taking larger ownership stakes and “investing with more conviction,” according to Aina.
The strategy shift comes as Series A funding has become increasingly scarce following a global pullback from major Silicon Valley investors.
While Ventures Platform intends to deepen its footprint in Nigeria, it is also expanding into Francophone West Africa and North Africa, regions where it has already made a few early investments.
The goal, Aina explained, is to gain earlier access to promising startups and help shape their growth across the continent.
With backing from both domestic and international investors — and the Nigerian government’s unprecedented participation — Ventures Platform’s second fund signals growing confidence in Africa’s innovation economy and its potential to produce the continent’s next generation of high-growth startups.
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