$20 M funding completed by SA VC HAVAÍC for early-stage tech investments across Africa
The third and final closing of the HAVAC Universum Core African Fund, a US $20 million funds that will invest in early-stage technology firms in South, East, and West Africa, has been announced by the South African venture capital company HAVAC.
HAVAC, based in Cape Town, is an investment and advisory firm that invests in and supports early-stage, high-growth African technology businesses with proven concepts and global prospects, providing sophisticated private and institutional investors with high-return and impactful investment opportunities.
The HAVAC Universum Core African Fund is the company’s second pan-African investment fund, with a third and final closing of US $20 million in cooperation with Universum Wealth, as well as institutional investors from South Africa and the United States, including Fireball Capital.
It will invest in African startups that employ technology to address real-world local, regional, and worldwide problems and have a significant influence on the markets they serve. The fund backs and invests in everything from post-revenue seed investments to later-stage growth Series A investments.
“The fund’s institutional investors bring new international relationships and capital. Coupled with our experience in investing in Africa, this makes for a winning combination of local expertise, networks, and follow-on funding internationally. These are all necessary ingredients when scaling businesses,” said Ian Lessem, managing partner at HAVAÍC.
The fund has invested in various South African, Kenyan, and Nigerian technology businesses since its establishment in 2020 as a joint venture with Universum Wealth. The third and final close allows HAVAC to execute on its exciting pipeline of investment opportunities and leverage its partnerships with existing and new investors in Africa and around the world, following its second close in 2021 and the inclusion of leading institutional partners such as South Africa-based Fireball Capital.
“The escalating interest from local and international investors supports the growing prominence of African venture capital as an asset class. This is off the back of an influx of increased investment in recent years spurred on by growing awareness of these enticing African investment opportunities for local and international investors. And with the investment demand for African tech-enabled companies showing no signs of slowing down, this is just the tip of the iceberg,” said Lessem.
Over the following three years, the fund plans to make up to 25 investments. AURA, Kuda, Crowdforce, Mobiz, CompariSure, Tanda, RecoMed, and hearX have already invested a third of the money in early-stage African technology firms in the finance, e-health, and safe-tech industries. The VC company plans to close investments in top pan-African communications platform Talk360 and Nigerian e-commerce business ShopEx in the coming weeks.
“We are drawn to HAVAÍC’s track record of supporting businesses that use technology-enabled solutions to solve real-world problems,” said Justin James, Investment Partner at Fireball Capital. “The impact of our smart capital allocation will result in sustainable job creation in South Africa and on the rest of the continent. And we look forward to working with our partners to successfully internationalise these businesses onto the global stage.”
