Verod-Kepple Africa Ventures (VKAV) concludes its pan-African venture fund with a final close of US$60 million, focusing on scalable, tech-enabled startups addressing challenges across the continent.

– VKAV, formed in 2021 as a joint venture between Kepple Africa Ventures (KAV) and Verod Holdings (Verod), is led by partners Satoshi Shinada, Ryosuke Yamawaki, and Ory Okolloh.

– The fund targets early-stage startups solving social issues in Africa and has attracted investments from notable institutions like SBI Holdings, Toyota Tsusho Corporation, and Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank.

Verod-Kepple Africa Ventures (VKAV) concluded its pan-African venture fund with a final close of US$60 million, focusing on scalable, tech-enabled startups tackling challenges across the continent.

Established in 2021 through a collaboration between Kepple Africa Ventures (KAV) and Verod Holdings (Verod), VKAV is spearheaded by partners Satoshi Shinada, Ryosuke Yamawaki, and Ory Okolloh.

This inaugural VKAV Fund harnesses the expertise of both entities to invest in early-stage startups addressing social issues in Africa.

Originally marking a first close of US$43 million in March 2023, the fund has now reached its final close, attracting investments from prominent institutions such as SBI Holdings, Toyota Tsusho Corporation, Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank, and Japan International Corporation Agency.

New investors joining include SCM Capital from Nigeria, along with several Japanese institutional investors like Taiyo Holdings and C2C Global Education Japan.

VKAV prioritizes growth-stage companies, aiming to bridge the funding gap, particularly at Series A and B stages, within the African startup ecosystem.

The fund targets three main themes: digital infrastructure builders, friction solvers between businesses or consumers, and market creators capitalizing on Africa’s evolving economy and demographics.

To date, VKAV has invested in 12 companies, including Moove Africa, KOKO Networks, Ceviant, Chari, Shuttlers, Nawy, Julaya, NowPay, Chefaa, Cloudline, Zone, and mTek-Services.