Partech (a global technology investment firm) announced the final closing of its second Africa fund, Partech Africa II, at a hard cap of €280 million ($300 million). It also opened a new office in Lagos and is looking to hire more team members.
Following a strong first closing announced last year, Partech Africa II reached its final closing at €280 million ($300+ million) with all major investors from its predecessor fund but also top tier investors making their first commitment into the Partech Africa platform and into the African VC ecosystem.
This oversubscribed final closing has provided the opportunity to attract new categories of global institutions, namely, US and Middle Eastern pension funds and sovereign funds. It also includes new strategic investors Africa Re and Dubai Future District Fund (DFDF) joining the early Partech Africa supporters: Orange, AXIAN Investment, and the African Development Bank Group (AFDB).
Overall, this fund has attracted support from a diverse group of 40+ international investors, from commercial investors like South Suez and Bertelsmann to family offices and major Development Finance Institutions (DFIs). This set of DFIs includes anchor investor KfW, the German Development Bank, the European Investment Bank (EIB), the International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, FMO, the Dutch entrepreneurial development bank, Bpifrance Investissement, British International Investment (BII), the UK’s development finance institution and impact investor, DEG – Deutsche Investitions – und Entwicklungsgesellschaft mbH and Proparco.
Partech Africa II will double down on investing across Africa with initial tickets ranging from $1 million to $15 million on Seed to Series C rounds to support African companies and founders on their growth journey in local and international markets. This Fund already counts three investments in its portfolio, a real-estate platform in Egypt, a payment orchestration startup in South Africa and an e-commerce platform in Senegal. And the team expects to build a portfolio of over 20 companies globally.
KEY QUOTES:
“We are grateful for the support and commitment of our investors: almost all Fund I investors reinvested and some, more than doubled their commitment. We are also honored to get the support from a new set of strategic investors from the US, the Middle East and Africa, and for some of whom, this marks their first commitment in African Tech.”
“The capacity to anchor rounds at all stages from Seed to Early Growth, is more critical than ever. It reinforces our mission to enable the emergence of technology companies that will create transformative value for African economies and shape the future of innovation globally.”
- Cyril Collon, General Partner at Partech
“We are also expanding our team and footprint on the continent. We are excited to have senior investment officer Tito Cookey-Gam join the team, to open our office in Lagos, home to almost a third of our portfolio. With our presence in Dakar, Nairobi, Dubai and now Lagos, we are strengthening our support on the ground for entrepreneurs”.
- Tidjane Deme, General Partner at Partech
