E4E Africa, a venture capital firm based in South Africa, has announced the first closing of its US$30 million E4E Africa fund II.
E4E Africa’s second fund has reached its first close, with a target size of US$30 million. The business announced that it is “actively attracting interest” from new investors around the world, allowing it to broaden its footprint even more.
With support from the SA SME Fund, E4E Africa launched in July 2020 and invested 11 times from its inaugural fund. These investments were made in firms like digital marketplace Qwili, home-services portal SweepSouth, and insurtech Pineapple.
“Our strong relationships with founders and seasoned African entrepreneurs have led to a surge in outstanding investment opportunities,” said Bas Hochstenbach, managing partner at E4E Africa. “This first close enables us to back the exceptional founders we see before us.”
“We are thrilled with the performance of our Fund II portfolio so far,” said Bakang Komanyane, principal at E4E Africa. “Our Fund II portfolio companies are thriving, and we are excited to announce a follow-on investment in the coming weeks.”
Fintech, education and employment tech, e-health, and energy solutions are some of the areas where the fund’s investments have been most fruitful, with a focus on the strongest entrepreneurial teams in Sub-Saharan African nations. Its network of seasoned entrepreneurs is its main source of value, and it emphasizes founder-centric support.
Kwara, a provider of core banking platforms in Kenya, TUNL, a provider of tech-enabled export shipping in South Africa, and a rapidly expanding company that is shaking up the conventional embedded finance scene in Kenya are the three companies that have so far received investments from E4E Africa Fund II.