Flourish Ventures, a London-based Venture Capital, has opened in Kenya due to its growing appetite for fintech innovations.
The firm, which invests in entrepreneurs whose innovations help people achieve financial health and prosperity, moves into the scene making Kenya the first country in East Africa where it has established a footprint.
Currently, the firm has a portfolio of a dozen startups located in Nigeria, Ghana, Egypt and Kenya that includes Apollo Agriculture, Fair Money, Financial Services Innovators (FSI), Flutterwave, Lendable, Pula and Paga.
The Kenyan operations based in Nairobi will be managed by Efayomi Carr as Principal.
“Efayomi has a strong network in Africa and will work closely with Kenyan entrepreneurs building tools and services for fintech – with a special emphasis on embedded finance and insurtech,” said Arjuna Costa, Managing Partner at Flourish Ventures on Carr’s appointment.
“We believe that Africa is on the cutting edge in the development of innovative and groundbreaking fintech solutions globally, and we are delighted that our Nairobi office will give us greater access across the continent,” said Costa.
According to the African Private Equity and Venture Capital Association (AVCA), Kenyan startups account for nearly 20 per cent of total early-stage investments in African startups.
The total venture capital for African startups grew to $1.31 billion in 2020, up from $1.27 billion according to the Bitter Bridges think tank.
