Verod-Kepple Africa Ventures

What Verod-Kepple Africa Ventures does

Verod-Kepple Africa Ventures (VKAV) is a Lagos-headquartered pan-African venture capital fund, founded in 2022 as a joint venture between Verod Capital Management Limited (a 15-year West Africa-focused private equity firm) and Kepple Africa Ventures (a Japan-connected Africa VC). The firm invests in tech-enabled, growth-stage companies across Africa, organized around three themes: tech-enabled infrastructure (closing gaps in banking, logistics, and insurance); inefficiency solvers (addressing fragmentation in supply chains, unaffordable solutions, and informal-economy friction); and home-grown innovation (capturing emerging African consumer trends and import-substitution opportunities). The portfolio spans 14–17 companies across nine markets, including Nigeria, Kenya, Egypt, Morocco, Côte d'Ivoire, and South Africa, covering mobility/fintech (Moove, NowPay, Julaya, Djamo), clean technology (KOKO Networks, Tagaddod), e-commerce (Chari, Chefaa), logistics (Shuttlers, Trella), proptech (Nawy), treasury management (Ceviant), payment infrastructure (Zone), deep tech (Cloudline), HR/payroll (Workpay), and auto fintech (Autochek).

VKAV's business model is a classic closed-end venture fund: it raised $60M at first-close in April 2024 from a concentrated Japanese LP base (JICA, SMTB, Toyota Tsusho, SBI Holdings, JICT, Taiyo Holdings, C2C Global Education Japan) plus regional LP SCM Capital from Nigeria, deploying capital via minority equity tickets typically $1M-$2M at pre-seed/seed/Series A stages, with partners taking board observer or strategic advisor seats. The firm's differentiator is a Japan-Africa corridor: it couples Verod's West African PE operational playbook (talent, legal, ESG, finance support) with Kepple's Japanese LP networks that source follow-on capital, strategic partnerships, and cross-border exit opportunities (e.g., M3 Inc. co-investment in Chefaa, Yoren data partnership). Distribution of capital is direct via proprietary deal-sourcing and network referrals; the firm does not sell a product but allocates fund LP commitments into portfolio companies.

The firm employs 11–50 staff across Lagos and Nairobi, with leadership including Partners Ory Okolloh, Ryosuke Yamawaki, and Satoshi Shinada, plus operating-layer executives (CFO, General Counsel, Senior ESG Manager). Notable milestones include the December 2025 bolttech acquisition of portfolio company mTek (a clean exit) offset by the February 2026 collapse and administration of portfolio company KOKO Networks following a Kenyan regulatory action on carbon credit authorization.

Name

Verod-Kepple Africa Ventures

Legal name

Verod-Kepple Africa Ventures

Website

https://vkav.vc

Company type

Private

Founded year

2022

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Verod-Kepple Africa Ventures is a Lagos-based, $60M pan-African venture capital fund formed as a joint venture between Verod Capital and Kepple Africa Ventures. It invests in tech-enabled, growth-stage African startups across mobility, fintech, logistics, and clean tech, leveraging a Japanese LP base.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Venture Capital Fund Management

NAICS

Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (523940), Funds, Trusts, and Other Financial Vehicles (525), Other Investment Pools and Funds (5259)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282)

akta.pro primary industry

SDG / Thematic Sustainable Investment Funds (FSANAJAN)

Keywords

• Venture capital fund
• Pan-African investing
• Growth-stage equity
• Tech-enabled startups
• Portfolio support services

Headquarters

HQ city

Lagos

HQ country

Nigeria

HQ region

Africa

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Verod-Kepple Africa Ventures (VKAV) manages a $60 million pan-African venture capital fund that provides equity capital and operational support to tech-enabled, growth-stage companies across Africa. The fund invests across three themes — Infrastructure, Inefficiency Solvers, and Home-grown Innovation — and supplements capital with hands-on value-add services in talent, legal, ESG/Impact, and finance. Investors are institutional limited partners, primarily Japanese, with portfolio founders as the operational beneficiaries of capital and support.

Product overview

Verod-Kepple Africa Ventures (VKAV) operates as a $60 million pan-African venture capital fund that provides capital and operational expertise to tech-enabled, growth-stage companies across Africa. The fund focuses on three core investment themes: Infrastructure (filling gaps in traditional infrastructure like banking, logistics, insurance), Inefficiency Solvers (addressing fragmentation in supply chains and markets), and Home-grown Innovation (catering to emerging African lifestyles and consumption trends). VKAV's portfolio consists of 17 portfolio companies spanning sectors including mobility/fintech (Moove, NowPay, Julaya, Djamo), clean technology (KOKO Networks, Tagaddod), e-commerce (Chari, Chefaa), logistics (Shuttlers, Trella), proptech (Nawy), treasury management (Ceviant), payment infrastructure (Zone), deep tech (Cloudline), and HR/payroll (Workpay). The fund leverages its Japanese LP network for strategic partnerships and exit opportunities.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• VKAV Fund (First Fund, $60M) A $60 million pan-African venture capital fund investing direct equity in tech-enabled, growth-stage companies across Africa across three themes: Infrastructure (filling gaps in traditional infrastructure such as banking and logistics), Inefficiency Solvers (solving fragmentation in supply chains and markets), and Home-grown Innovation (catering to emerging African lifestyles and consumption trends). Institutional LPs (primarily Japanese) are the capital providers, while portfolio founders are the operational beneficiaries of capital plus hands-on support.
• Portfolio Operational Support Services Hands-on operational support offered to portfolio companies across critical functions: talent and people ops; legal; ESG/Impact; and finance, including fundraising preparation, governance support, talent sourcing, and expansion assistance. Delivered as part of the fund's "systemic value creation" model.
• Ecosystem Plug / Founder Collaboration Forums Curated forums for active collaboration and knowledge sharing among portfolio founders, plus facilitated engagement with key players in the African VC landscape and Japanese corporate networks, enabling strategic partnerships, learning exchange, and exit pathways.

Quantifiable outcome

• 800,000+ individuals and small businesses impacted
• +2 more outcomes

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered strategic and flagship.

• YorenstrategicStrategic or Co-development PartnerYoren, a Japanese consumer analytics company managing loyalty programs with over 50 million active members in China, made an additional investment in VKAV and entered a strategic partnership to support Yoren's Africa activities. Both companies collaborate on data-driven marketing and branding solutions for consumer-facing businesses entering Africa.
• Verod Capital Management LimitedflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerVerod Capital Management Limited is VKAV's joint venture partner, contributing 15 years of West Africa investment track record, operational best practices, and hands-on portfolio support capabilities. This is the core of VKAV's operational value proposition.
• Kepple Africa VenturesflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerKepple Africa Ventures is VKAV's joint venture partner, bringing investment expertise across East and Southern Africa. Founders Ryosuke Yamawaki and Satoshi Shinada lead Kepple's African investment activities.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Partech Africa: Pan-African venture capital fund (~$280M) investing across growth-stage African tech. Directly comparable to VKAV in stage, geography, and sector focus, though materially larger in AUM and check size.
• Novastar Ventures: East Africa-focused VC fund backing growth-stage ventures addressing mass-market needs. Highly comparable thesis to VKAV's infrastructure-and-inefficiency themes, with similar development-oriented LP base.
• TLcom Capital: Pan-African early-to-growth-stage VC with TIDE Africa fund. Direct peer in stage, ticket size, and pan-African geographic mandate; competes head-to-head with VKAV on growth-stage African tech deals.
• Norrsken22 (4DX Ventures): Pan-African early/growth-stage VC investing across the continent. Directly competes with VKAV (notably co-invested in Workpay) and operates a similar stage and sector thesis targeting tech-enabled African businesses.
• Enza Capital: Pan-African growth-stage VC investing in fintech, healthtech, agritech, and digital infrastructure across Africa. Comparable thesis on tech-enabled infrastructure gaps, similar stage focus and ticket profile to VKAV.
• Lateral Capital: Pan-African growth-stage VC with focus on Nigerian and West African tech-enabled businesses. Closely comparable to VKAV's Verod-rooted West Africa operational strength and growth-stage ticket sizing.
• Aruwa Capital: Nigeria-focused growth-stage VC backing consumer and B2B businesses. Directly comparable in stage, geography, and ticket size — and competes for the same Lagos-anchored deal flow as VKAV.
• Goodwell Investments: Inclusive growth-stage investor across Africa and India with strong impact/development orientation. Comparable to VKAV on inclusive-Africa thesis, DFI-backed LP structure, and stage focus.

Broad incumbents

• Acumen Fund: Established impact investor deploying patient capital across Africa and other emerging markets. Comparable to VKAV on impact-led investing and DFI-aligned LP base, but materially larger and earlier stage.
• British International Investment (BII): UK development finance institution making direct venture and growth equity investments across Africa. Comparable institutional/DFI LP-adjacent mandate to VKAV's impact/development thesis, though operating at much larger scale as a direct investor.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles13 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments19 records

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Verod-Kepple Africa Ventures