Trusted Venture Capital Firms for Businesses in Nigeria
Trusted Venture Capital Firms Investing in New Businesses in Nigeria
In a previous post, we looked at some surefire ways to raise funds for businesses in Nigeria.
In that post, we mentioned venture capital firms as one of the major sources of funding for Nigerian startups.
You really should see the 10 tested and trusted sources of funding for startups in Nigeria if you are a new business owner.
I decided to write this sequel so as to expose you to some trusted venture capital firms for startups in Nigeria.
In this article, I will be looking at some 20 trusted Venture Capital firms that are raising funds for new businesses in Nigeria today.
So, relax and enjoy the ride.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Introduction
Definitions: What is Venture Capital? Who are Venture capitalists/firms?
Why Nigerian Businesses Need Venture Capital Firms
List of Trusted Venture Capital Firms in Nigeria
How to Find Venture Capital Firms in Nigeria
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Without further ado, let’s get started.
Trusted Venture Capital Firms for Startups in Nigeria Today
What is Venture Capital?
Venture capital is the financing that is made available for early stage, high-risk new businesses that have a high potential for growth.
Venture capital is provided to new firms by individual venture capitalists.
These capitalists come together to form an organization providing funds for startups.
They call these funds venture capital.
Venture capital is mostly made available to companies who are in their early stages in industries such as information technology and other industries driven by innovative business models.
Venture capitalists invest in startups with equity from the company or an ownership stake in exchange.
They invest in such risky new ventures with the hope that the companies become highly successful and that they can have a tangible percentage of the company’s ownership.
Venture capital can be given only after a business has raised “seed funding”.
Seed funding is the initial investment a new business gets from family and friends, crowdfunding or angel investors to kick-start the business before making any sales or traction.
After a company has demonstrated its potential in the market, gains traction and has a good team, venture capitalists may can consider funding such a company if it meets their other requirements.
Who are Venture Capitalists/Firms?
A venture capitalist is wealthy individuals who have the financial muscle and interest to invest in early-stage new businesses with tested potential for growth.
Venture capitalist firms are organizations or platforms who finance startups.
Such organizations are established by venture capitalists or individual financers.
Venture capitalists in addition to their personal money, sometimes source for funds for investable businesses from other organizations.
Apart from funding promising businesses, venture capitalists also support businesses through experienced advice, free office space, marketing strategies and other technicalities.
They may demand a seat on the board of directors of the new company plus a chunk of the new company.
To exit a company, a venture capitalist may sell their investment to another investor.
The company that was funded may also buy an investor out of their company.
When this happens, it is called ‘repurchasing’.
In case of liquidation (when a business closes), an investment firm may voluntarily exit a company.
But why do you need venture capital firms for your business?
Why Nigerian Businesses Need Venture Capital Firms
At the 2018 National Economic Council meeting, it was stated that Nigeria has over 37.07 million micro, small and medium-scale enterprises, MSMEs.
This number of MSMEs cater to over 84% of jobs in the country.
With this huge number of businesses coming out of Nigeria, the economic prosperity of the country no doubt hinges on the success of these enterprises.
Sadly, the country’s governments hardly pay necessary attention to the growth and sustainability of these enterprises
This results in unavailability of bank loans and needed tax holidays for deserving emerging enterprises among.
New businesses running in Nigeria apart from battling foes such as lack of electricity also have to look for ways of raising funds for their businesses.
Many businesses have packed up and closed within the first 1-2 years of establishment.
This is mostly due to lack of needed funds to inject into their businesses among other problems bedevilling business owners in Nigeria.
For this reason, serious startups need to tap into venture capital funds as a way out of their ordeal.
And the good news is that in recent times, there has been an increase in the number of venture capitalist firms showing interest in investing in startups in Nigeria and sub-Saharan Africa.
The big question for most startups in Nigeria is then is, “who are these venture capitalists and how can I access them”?
That leads us to the list of trusted Venture Capital Firms in Nigeria.
List of Trusted Venture Capital Firms in Nigeria
- Venture Garden Group
Venture Garden Group (VGG) is a provider of innovative, data-driven, end-to-end technology platforms.
Their mission is to transform Africa by using innovative technologies to solve real socio-economic challenges in impact sectors critical to sustainable economic development.
They are in energy, healthcare, education, aviation, financial services and social services.
Through GreenHouse Capital, the investment arm of VGG, we support Africa’s next generation of high growth technology startups and entrepreneurs.
They offer investment services and resources to passionate entrepreneurs who find opportunities in the midst of challenges and are poised to transform emerging markets in a fundamental way.
- SPARK
SPARK speak regularly to international investors, helping people make smart investments in Nigeria’s buoyant tech eco-system.
They are interested in bringing talents into their Spark family.
If you are an internet-based start-up that is at the seed-investment stage, you can send them an email on info@spark.ng .
- Verod Capital Management
Verod was founded in 2008 as an investment boutique operating out of West Africa.
Verod is backed by a rich blend of mainly foreign and institutional investors including pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, insurance companies, and asset management firms, fund of funds, family offices and development finance institutions.
- Unique Venture Capital
Unique Venture Capital is an SME-focused private Venture Capital investment firm established in 2004 by 5 major Nigerian banks.
They provide private equity and business finance to SMEs.
They encourage innovative Emerging Market entrepreneurs and boost economic growth in UVC’s operational area.
They have invested in many promising SMEs in Nigeria since their establishment.
- Rocket Internet Capital Partners Fund
They are interested in market-leading, high growth Internet-related businesses.
They have access to significant financial capital.
RICP leverages Rocket Internet SE’s sector know-how, regional and operational expertise as well as its deep network, global reach and access to portfolio companies.
The Fund provides funding over the lifecycle of high-growth Internet businesses.
RICP seeks to invest in key focus areas of the Internet sector including marketplaces, e-commerce, financial technology, software and travel.
RICP received strong backing from a diverse group of global investors, including financial institutions, pension funds, asset managers, foundations and high net worth individuals.
- Silvertree Capitals
Silvertree Capital is an arm of the organization.
They are a holding and operating company, based in South Africa.
They conceive, launch, operate and invest in early- and mid-stage companies targeting the South African and Sub-Saharan African markets.
They like business models that are simple or proven, with clear revenue streams, that take advantage of the mobile and Internet future, and that target growing markets and industries.
- Lighthouse Capital Limited
Lighthouse Capital provides various financial services to SMEs including lending, deals discounting and financial consultancy.
- Growth Capital
Growth Capital is Nigeria’s social innovation fund aimed at creating an unprecedented path to scale for outliers driving social change in Nigeria.
Growth Capital supports high potential, early-stage businesses building our next generation infrastructure using technology.
Their participating investors bring their experience, resources and networks together to work for our investees to catalyze their path to growth.
- Microtraction
Microtraction identifies the best early-stage, growth-driven technology startups with the potential to become billion dollar companies.
They work closely with the startups, providing them with pre-seed funding, professional and advisory services.
They get startups to a point where they are impressive enough to raise more funding or join world class accelerators.
They introduce startups to later stage investors and help them navigate the process of raising a larger round of funding.
- TLcom Capital
Since its inception, TLcom has backed Tech companies in early to growth stages in Europe, Israel and Sub Saharan Africa.
They look for entrepreneurs with the ability to identify an innovative solution to a relevant need and help them create superior execution and long-term competitive advantage.
- Treasure Capital and Trust
Treasure Capital & Trust Limited is located in Lagos Nigeria.
They offer services such as financial services, money markets, capital markets and Investment Management Services, etc.
- Kord Capital Limited
Kord Capital is interested in providing investments by identifying high opportunities and matching them with locally or internationally sourced capital.
They are located in Victoria Island Lagos, Nigeria.
13 KAIZEN VENTURE PARTNERS (KVP)
They are focused on sub-Saharan Africa with five priority states: Cote D’Ivoire, Ghana, Kenya and Nigeria. Their interest is in FMCG, retail, agriculture, light manufacturing, and retail financial services.
- Cchub
Co-Creation Hub is an open lab and pre-incubation space designed as a multi-functional, multi-purpose space where work to catalyze creative social tech ventures take place.
The hub is located in Lagos for technologists, social entrepreneurs, tech companies in and around Lagos to co-create new solutions social problems in Nigeria.
Cchub’s growth capital arm is a social innovation fund aimed at creating an unprecedented path to scale for outliers driving social change.
They’ve invested about N210,600,000,00 since its inception.
- EchoVC Partners
Echo venture capital fund focuses on financing and cross-pollinating leading technologies, teams and business models in sub-Saharan Africa and North America.
- Lagos Angel Network
Lagos Angel Network provides an opportunity for serious and qualified entrepreneurs to harness high reward investment vehicle to back their ventures.
They have a forum where their members can efficiently evaluate promising early-stage investment opportunities and monitor portfolio investments until their next round of funding.
- Greentree Investments
Greentree Investments provide access to the optimal amount of funding required to scale innovative technology businesses in Nigeria.
- Sahel Capital
They are focused on Agriculture in West Africa and creating strong agricultural sector-led economic growth within the region.
If you are in the Agricultural sector, you might want to check them out.
- Adlevo Capital
Adlevo Capital provides equity and equity-linked investments in rapidly growing private companies in various stages of development.
The companies they invest in derive competitive advantage from the development and exploitation of technology or technology-driven processes.
So here we go. These are some of the trusted venture capital firms in Nigeria right now.
You can get to know them more by visiting their websites and knowing their programs so as for you to key in.
