Flourish Ventures, a fintech venture capital firm, has launched a new office based in Nairobi to help its investment team better serve entrepreneurs across Africa. The firm targets entrepreneurs who are building innovations that help advance financial health and economic resilience for people and small businesses.
Flourish said that it is focused on building its investment in Africa by adding to its growing portfolio of a dozen startups located in Kenya, Nigeria, Ghana, and Egypt. Successful start-ups in its portfolio include Apollo Agriculture, Fair Money, Financial Services Innovators (FSI), Flutterwave, Lendable, Pula and Paga.
Efayomi Carr is the Principal of Flourish Kenya, and will manage the company’s operations in Nairobi. Carr is an experienced entrepreneur who previously served as Head of Strategic Finance for Lori, a tech startup that builds cost-saving market infrastructure for the trucking sector in Africa. He joins the firm’s Africa investment team that includes Managing Partner Arjuna Costa and Venture Partner Ameya Upadhyay.
“We believe Africa is on the cutting edge in the development of innovative and groundbreaking fintech solutions with global relevance, and we are delighted that our Nairobi office will give us greater access across the continent. Efayomi has a strong network in Africa and will work closely with partners and entrepreneurs to nurture the creative solutions that will enhance the financial wellbeing of households and small businesses across the continent,” said Costa.
According to the Bitter Bridges Think Tank, African start-ups received total venture capital of Ksh. 144 billion ($1.31 billion) in 2020, up from Ksh. 139 billion ($1.27 billion) in 2019, despite the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The economic uncertainty created by the pandemic has inspired us to renew our focus on African entrepreneurs that are tackling key systemic issues in the financial services industry. We hope that our presence on the ground will enhance our ability to share learnings and best practices across our global portfolio, and accelerate the impact we hope to have on the continent,” added Costa.
In 2020, Flourish released the South African edition of its global research survey, dubbed The Digital Hustle: Gig Worker Financial Lives Under Pressure. The survey tracked the experiences of gig workers who use digital platforms such as e-hailing or delivery apps to learn more about the progress of essential workers during the COVID-19 pandemic. The report found that 76% of the 600 surveyed gig workers experienced a large decrease in income since March 2020.
In addition to financial support, Flourish provides its portfolio entrepreneurs with experts in finance and operations, human resources, legal, and marketing. The firm also hosts ongoing education and networking events and activities for its clientele.