AFRICA: Agriculture, energy, mobility… Equator raises $40 million for start-ups

Venture capital firm Equator has closed its first fund dedicated to sustainable growth in Africa. The fund will finance seed-stage companies that rely on technology to accelerate sustainable development in sub-Saharan Africa.

A new financing mechanism should accompany start-ups in their growth in Africa south of the Sahara. It is a fund launched by the venture capital firm Equator, which announced its financial closing with the mobilization of $ 40 million. The fund is financed by British International Investment (BII), the financial arm of the British diplomacy, the Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet (GEAPP), the foundation of the British oil company Shell and the impact investor Doen Participaties.

The funds raised will be reinvested in seed and Series A companies, including start-ups innovating in key sectors such as energy, agriculture and mobility. Equator, which is behind this initiative, has already invested in several start-ups in sub-Saharan Africa. This is the case of Roam, a start-up based in Nairobi, Kenya, which specializes in mobility, including the assembly of electric motorcycles and buses.

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Equator has also funded SunCulture, which specializes in solar-powered irrigation, as well as Apollo Agriculture, Odyssey Energy Solutions. “We see a significant gap in support for startups between the first wave of pre-seed funding and the recent influx of capital from larger, later stage investors,” says Morgan DeFoort, Equator partner and founder of Factor[e] Ventures, which is supporting the fund’s rollout in Africa.

“This led us to identify a specific opportunity for Equator to provide both funding and hands-on assistance to seed and Series A climate technology companies focused on sub-Saharan Africa,” he adds. To accelerate the development of its activities in sub-Saharan Africa, Equator has opened offices in Nairobi, Kenya; Lagos, Nigeria; London, United Kingdom; and Colorado, United States of America.