World Bank’s International Finance Corporation (IFC) has launched a new US$225 million venture capital platform to invest in early-stage tech companies in Africa. These countries include the Middle East, Central Asia, and Pakistan.
According to the IFC, these regions collectively received less than two percent of the US$643 billion in global
venture capital funding in 2021.
How The World Bank’s IFC New Platform Will Benefit From This
Furthermore, the new platform will make equity or equity-like investments in tech startups in regions like Egypt, Kenya, Nigeria, Pakistan, Senegal, and south-Africa that have just begun to display signs of full potential or non-existent and help them grow into scalable ventures that can attract mainstream equity.
The IFC will also collaborate with other World Bank Group teams to create and bolster venture capital ecosystems through regulatory reforms, sector analyses, and other tools.
World Bank’s IFC Achievements
Through existing initiatives such as the IFC Startup Catalyst Programme, the IFC has invested in companies such as Nigerian B2B procurement platform TradeDepot and Kenyan food distribution platform Twiga Foods.
”IFC’s Venture Capital Platform will help tech, companies, and entrepreneurs expand during a time of capital
shortage, creating scalable investment opportunities, and backing countries’ efforts to build transformative tech
ecosystems,’‘ said Makhtar Diop, IFC’s Managing Director.
Nigerian Startups Making Us Proud
One such is the Nigerian Fintech startup, Kolomoni got an award recognition as the most innovative savings/investment platform of the year. It was crowned at the Africa Financial Technology Congress event held in Lagos.
Fully a digital bank, it provides financial services for the unbanked through its excellent consumer banking platform.
Organizers of the Nigerian Fintech Awards selected four institutions and nine individuals for special recognition. This is to celebrate their contributions to the growth and development of the Nigerian fintech industry. One of the awardees was the Co-founder and CEO, of Flutterwave, Olugbenga Agboola,
Conclusion
We hope with the capital that will be invested, the tech startups will be able to exceed our imaginations and build profitable innovations for their customers.
