Launch Africa pays $2.5 million to investors after 11 portfolio exits

Launch Africa, a Leading Pan-African Venture Capitalist Fund, has paid about $2.5 million to its limited partners (LPs) from its Launch Africa Seed Fund 1. The distribution, accounting for about 7% of the fund, is its first cash payback to investors.

The milestone signifies a return on investment and comes at a time when about half of global venture funds from the 2020-vintage fund have yet to return any capital to their investors. The distribution also follows 11 completed portfolio exits.

Launch Africa Ventures was founded by Zachariah George and Janade Du Plessis in 2020. Zach and Janade have been pioneers of early-stage venture capital in Africa since 2014, bridging the funding gap for Seed and pre-Series A startups across the African continent.

In his reaction to the development, Zachariah George, managing partner of Launch Africa Ventures, explained that the distribution marks a significant milestone for its investors and the African venture ecosystem as a whole.

He added that the core of venture capital is ultimately judged on realised returns and not paper gains.

“We are proud to show that African technology companies can generate liquidity, and that our investors can receive cash while significant upside remains in the portfolio,” he said.

Janade du Plessis, managing partner of Launch Africa Ventures, explained that Launch Africa has always maintained the focus of building a venture platform that pairs broad market access with disciplined portfolio management.

“This distribution is the product of years of work – backing founders, building strategic relationships and actively engineering liquidity for our investors,” he said.

Since 2020, Launch Africa has raised just over $36 million in its first fund, investing $31 million into 133 startups across 22 countries, with impressive returns. The aim is to convert investments into distributions and launch new funds, nurturing top-performing portfolio companies.

The firm invests from pre-seed to seed and pre-Series A tech companies solving significant challenges across fintech, health-tech, agri-tech, logistics, ed-tech and enterprise software, and supports its portfolio with follow-on capital, global distribution partnerships, and access to a network of more than 400 LPs across 45 countries.

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Launch Africa’s 11 portfolio exits

The $25 million distributed to investors follows 11 completed portfolio exits. The 11 exits span seven sectors, six countries and five African regions.

In Fintech, the company saw 5 exits in embedded lending, debt recovery, digital credit infrastructure, remittances and credit intelligence. One exit each across payments infrastructure, agritech, logistics, B2B e-commerce, HR software and employee wellness.

In terms of region, Southern Africa – 3 (South Africa), West Africa – 3 (Nigeria, Ghana), Francophone West Africa – 3 (Senegal): logistics, e-commerce and fintech, East Africa – 1 (Tanzania) and North Africa – 1 (Egypt).

Launch Africa noted that across the 11 positions, realised multiples reached up to 5x, with several exits returning more than 2x. Individual companies and transaction terms are not disclosed.