Early-stage investors and venture capitalists invest in startup businesses and get a share of the company in the form of equity.
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At entrepreneurs.ng, we know that entrepreneurship is a lonely journey with the challenges that entrepreneurship presents. Starting a business is lonely, tough and rough. Sourcing and securing funds to drive and sustain the business is more challenging.
The truth is that many business owners and entrepreneurs do not have the right knowledge about financing opportunities in Nigeria. There are many venture capitalist and angel investors who are looking for viable businesses they can invest in.
Several businesses we know in Nigeria are only possible because of angel investors and venture capitalist. And, to a great extent, aspiring business owners and entrepreneurs are taking bold steps to pitch their business ideas to investors in the hopes of getting funded.
In Nigeria, there are several early-stage investors and venture capitalists. This article features ten (10) early stage investors and venture capitalists.
Are you an aspiring entrepreneur seeking funding for your business idea? Prepare your pitch deck and get ready to be funded! Read this article till the end and you’re on your way to meeting your first investor. Good luck!
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10 Early-Stage Investors and Venture Capitalists in Nigeria
1. Venture Platform
Venture platform is one of the early-stage investor platform that is trusted by many. It is spearheaded by Kola Aina and supported by other tech gurus. Basically, Venture Platform partners with bold founders during their early days of starting a company.
If you are going after a big or growing market with a killer product, Venture Platform is the best place to be. Interestingly, several highly acclaimed companies have emerged from Venture Platform. Some of the companies funded by Venture Platform include: Printivo, Paystack, Thrive Agric, Accounteer, Reliance HMO and PiggyVest.
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2. SPARK Capital
Spark Capital is another company that builds companies with a major focus on Lagos, Nigeria. Basically, Spark supports startups that have a well-defined and scalable revenue model.
It was founded by Jason Njoku, the founder of IrokoTV. Some of the companies they’ve partnered with include; drinks.ng, hotels.ng, tolet.com.ng, Ogavenue, and Medsaf.
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3. GreenHouse Capital
Venture Garden Group introduced Green House Capital in January 2016. GreenHouse is one of the largest fintech investment holding company in Nigeria. Their goal is to provide African technology companies with the resources and network they need to drive growth and scale their companies locally and internationally.
Over the years, the company has supported companies like Max.ng, Flutterwave, Mines.IO, Appzone Africa and Adspread alike.
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4. Growth Capital by CCHub
Here is also one of the early-stage investor platforms supporting high potential businesses that are using technology to build the next-generation infrastructure.
In addition, Growth Capital has participating investors that bring their years of experience to help facilitate the growth of the investees. Some of the investors include CC Hub, Bank of Industry and Venture Garden Group.
The platform has invested in 6 companies building digital infrastructure across healthcare, commerce, education, and other sectors. The companies are Taeillo, Edves, Riby, LifeBank, DeliveryScience, and DrugStoc.
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5. LeadPath Nigeria
At LeadPath, the major focus is on technology entrepreneurs dealing in software applications, mobile applications, electronic payments, and big data.
LeadPath average investment ranges from $25,000 and above depending on the stage and needs of the business. The companies in their portfolio include Regista, PushCV, and Intellectric.
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6. GreenTree Investment Company
GreenTree Investment Company makes our list of early-stage investors. This company provides access to funding for an innovative technology business.
More than that, they provide technical support, legal advice, governance structure and simple financial planning to the businesses they invest in. Some of the companies they have invested in are Big Cabal Media, Precurio and Paystack.
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7. SLA Accelerator
Needless to say, She Leads Africa Accelerator is a trusted early-stage investor platform that supports Nigeria’s brightest female entrepreneurs. Basically, it’s a 3-month program that is opened to businesses based anywhere in Nigeria.
To be a partaker, all you need to do is to apply from their site whenever the application is opened. However, there are criteria involved to qualify.
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8. EchoVC Partners
EchoVC Partners is an early-stage investor and venture capitalist company. They provide funding for leading technology companies and teams with sustainable business models in Sub-Saharan Africa, Europe, and North America.
The companies in their portfolio include but not limited to SystemOne, Gro Intelligence, Hotels.ng, Printivo, Lifebank, myPadi.ng and Easyshop Easycook.
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9. Lagos Angel Network (LAN)
LAN is an early-stage investor that gives Lagos based entrepreneurs access to funding, mentoring and building a sustainable business ecosystem. In addition, LAN is a not for profit entity that organizes seed funders to invest in start-up businesses.
Importantly, they partner with renowned establishments like British Council, Co-creation Hub, She Leads Africa, Mest, Global Business Angels Network, Demo Africa and many more.
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10. Microtraction
This is another trusted early-stage investor in Africa. Basically Microtraction invests in Africa’s most remarkable teams with technical founders at the earliest stage of their venture.
In addition, they invest $65,000 in two stages. First, they invest $15,000 for a 7.5% equity stake, then an additional convertible note at a $1 million valuation cap in companies that demonstrate growth potential after the initial investment.
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