What Acasia Ventures does

Acasia Ventures is an early-stage venture capital firm headquartered in Cairo, Egypt, with regional offices in Dubai (UAE) and Lagos (Nigeria). Founded in 2011 by Aly El Shalakany and Hossam Allam originally as Cairo Angels — Egypt and Africa's first angel investment network — the firm rebranded as Acasia Ventures and now operates as the venture capital investment arm of the Acasia Group. The firm invests Pre-Seed to Series A in tech-enabled startups across the Middle East and Africa, with a disclosed portfolio of 13+ companies spanning fintech, HR tech, logistics, e-commerce, edtech, agritech, and AI-driven retail intelligence in Egypt, Nigeria, Kenya, Tanzania, Senegal, South Africa, and the UAE.

The firm positions itself as 'first believers' and supports founders with venture capital, strategic insights, market expansion opportunities, and introductions to global investors. It has led co-investment rounds in Lengo AI (pre-seed, AI-driven FMCG intelligence) and Balad (pre-seed, remittance fintech), and participated in seed rounds for Credable (digital banking infrastructure), Fez Delivery (last-mile logistics), Menthum (digital savings), and bluworks (blue-collar workforce management). Deal sourcing operates through founder networks, ecosystem relationships, and direct outreach, with frequent co-investment syndicates alongside Ventures Platform, Launch Africa, A15, Enza Capital, Beltone Venture Capital, and others.

As a VC firm, Acasia generates revenue through management fees on its fund(s) and carried interest from successful exits via IPOs, acquisitions, or secondary sales. The firm's reported staff includes Managing Partner Aly El Shalakany and General Partner Biola Alabi, plus at least one senior investment associate, with overall headcount in the 11–50 range. Specific fund size, AUM, and fee economics are not publicly disclosed.

Name

Acasia Ventures

Legal name

Acasia Ventures

Website

https://acasia.ventures

Company type

Private

Founded year

2011

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Acasia Ventures is an early-stage venture capital firm founded in 2011 (originally as Cairo Angels), headquartered in Cairo with offices in Dubai and Lagos, investing Pre-Seed to Series A in tech startups across the Middle East and Africa.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Venture Capital

NAICS

Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (523940)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282)

akta.pro primary industry

Corporate Strategic Partnership & Ecosystem Investment Arms (FSANAHAF)

Keywords

• Early-stage venture capital
• Pre-Seed to Series A
• MENA Africa startups
• Angel investment network
• Founder-focused investing

Headquarters

HQ city

Cairo

HQ country

Egypt

HQ region

Africa

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Investment Returns on Equity Portfolio: Acasia Ventures generates returns through equity ownership in portfolio companies. Returns are realized through exits via IPOs, acquisitions, or secondary sales. The firm manages investment capital for limited partners seeking exposure to MENA and Africa tech startups.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Acasia Ventures is a venture capital firm that provides early-stage equity funding (Pre-Seed to Series A) to tech founders building highly scalable digital solutions across the Middle East and Africa. Beyond capital, the firm delivers mentorship, market expansion support, strategic insights, and access to a global investor network throughout the startup lifecycle.

Product overview

Acasia Ventures is a venture capital firm, not a software product company. Its core 'offering' is venture capital investment — providing financial capital, strategic insights, market expansion support, and access to global investor networks to early-stage founders building digital solutions across the Middle East and Africa. The firm has an established track record dating to 2011 (originating as Cairo Angels) and has invested in over 20 portfolio companies spanning fintech, HR tech, logistics, e-commerce, edtech, and scientific research platforms. Rather than a unified software platform, the portfolio consists of independently operated companies including Lengo AI (FMCG intelligence), Menthum (digital savings), Credrails (reconciliation), Settle (ERP payments), Suplyd (F&B procurement), Pumpkn (SME lending), Credable (digital banking infrastructure), Fez Delivery (last-mile logistics), Balad (remittance), Bluworks (HR management), Orcas (tutoring), Nawah Scientific (research platform), Fin (credit-led neo-banking), FlexPay (layaway savings), CredPal (BNPL), Kashat (nano-lending), TFK (fashion e-commerce), Tappi (customer engagement), Pharmacy Marts (pharma marketplace), Winich Farms (agricultural supply chain), and QiDZ (family activity platform).

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Acasia Ventures Early-Stage Venture Capital Fund Early-stage venture capital funding from Pre-Seed to Series A for tech founders in the Middle East and Africa. Includes equity investment, mentorship, market expansion support, and access to global investor networks.

Named customers12 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Impact Hub LagosminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcasia's Lagos office is located at Impact Hub building, part of global network of innovation incubators and coworking spaces.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Ventures Platform: Nigerian VC firm focused on early-stage African tech startups. Ventures Platform is a repeat co-investor and lead investor alongside Acasia in Credable, Fez Delivery, and Lengo AI, making it a directly comparable peer in deal sourcing, stage, and geography.
• Enza Capital: MENA-focused venture capital firm investing in early-stage tech startups. Enza Capital co-invested with Acasia in bluworks, operating in overlapping geography and stage.
• P1 Ventures: Africa-focused early-stage VC firm. P1 Ventures co-invested with Acasia in Lengo AI, sharing a focus on African tech founders at pre-seed and seed stages.
• Beltone Venture Capital: Egyptian venture capital firm affiliated with Beltone Holding. Co-investor with Acasia in bluworks, operating in the same Egypt-focused early-stage ecosystem.
• A15: Egyptian venture capital firm that invests in early-stage tech startups across MENA. A15 is a direct peer and repeat co-investor with Acasia Ventures in companies such as bluworks and Menthum, operating in the same stage and sectors.
• Launch Africa: Pan-African venture capital firm investing in early-stage African startups. Launch Africa has co-invested with Acasia in Lengo AI and Balad, sharing a similar stage focus and pan-African mandate.

Broad incumbents

• Algebra Ventures: Egypt-focused VC firm investing in early-to-growth stage Egyptian tech startups. Algebra is an established regional incumbent operating in overlapping geography with broader sector coverage.
• Sawari Ventures: North African VC firm investing in Egyptian and Tunisian startups. Sawari is an established regional incumbent with a longer fund history than Acasia, operating in overlapping geography.
• Flat6Labs: MENA-focused seed-stage investor and accelerator. Flat6Labs is a broader incumbent operating across multiple MENA markets with a structured accelerator program, comparable to Acasia at the earliest stages.

Emerging players

• Ingressive Capital: Africa-focused venture capital firm investing in early-stage tech startups across the continent. Ingressive has a narrower geographic and stage focus but competes for similar African tech founders.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A

Investments23 records

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

Frequently asked questions about Acasia Ventures