Nigerian founders-turned-investors are now running syndicate funds
The Future Africa Fund kicked off in 2015 when Iyinoluwa Aboyeji and Nadayar Enegesi, co-founders of U.S.-based and African-focused talent company Andela, wrote checks to African startups as angel investors. This continued even as Aboyeji joined and left Flutterwave, the fintech company he co-founded.
In January 2020, the pair made the fund official, with Aboyeji as general partner and Enegesi as limited partner. Simultaneously, they announced that the fund had invested $1.5 million across 19 African companies.
The idea for a syndicate fund would come in the following months as the pandemic disrupted investment activities worldwide.
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AfCFTA’S WILL PICK UP AFTER SLOW START The African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA), the world’s largest regional trading agreement has been on the front burner for trade for years. After signing on 54 out of 55 African countries, trading among the nations began on January 1, 2021. A few observers argued that the beginning of trading for the AfCFTA was rushed and pointed out some of the problems that many of the member nations haven’t solved.
Nigeria, the largest and most populous economy in Africa, doesn t have the right customs infrastructure to start implementing the agreement s free trade terms. Only about 34 countries have submitted ratification instruments. Stories of new internet shutdowns remind everyone just how unpredictable it is to do business on the continent.