FMO, the Dutch entrepreneurial development bank, and Algebra Ventures, a top Egyptian venture capital firm, today announced a USD 10 million commitment for the fund manager’s second fund. The agreement was signed in the presence of the Dutch ambassador in Cairo, H.E. Mr. Han-Maurits Schaapveld.
“It is an honor for us to have FMO as an investor in our new fund. FMO’s wealth of experience and knowledge across the African continent and their deep expertise in agritech and fintech, in particular, are of significant strategic value to Algebra. We look forward to working closely with FMO to support exceptional companies in Egypt and across Africa,” Karim Hussein, Managing Partner at Algebra Ventures, said.
Here’s What You Need To Know
- Algebra Ventures’ second fund, announced in April 2021, invests in Egyptian digital start-ups with a focus on the wider Middle East and Africa market. Other investing partners include the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, in addition to FMO, which is investing through the FMO Ventures Program (EBRD).
- Algebra Ventures has invested in 21 start-ups and backed world-class entrepreneurs who are establishing market-leading firms four years into its initial USD 54 million fund. Algebra Ventures’ managing partners Tarek Assad and Karim Hussein will continue to help digital start-ups with access to money and expertise through their new fund, fostering innovation and job development largely in Egypt.
- Laila Hassan and Omar Khashaba have joined Algebra Ventures as general partners for the second fund, bringing considerable regional and worldwide venture capital investment experience.
- The fund will look for early-stage investment opportunities in fintech, agritech, edutech, logistics, e-commerce, and healthcare start-ups, collaborating with high-potential founders to fill specific market gaps in these industries.
“We are excited to partner with Algebra Ventures, one of the most deep-rooted and seasoned venture capital firms in Egypt. FMO believes regional investors like Algebra Ventures play an instrumental role in both the creation and maturing of markets. We look forward to continuing to support and learn from the flourishing Egyptian venture capital ecosystem,” Marieke Roestenberg, Head of the FMO Ventures Program, said.
FMO’s investment is consistent with the bank’s goal of enabling new business models with a positive impact in Africa, the Middle East, and portions of Asia. The commitment is made possible by the FMO Ventures Program, a EUR 200 million investment programme co-funded by the FMO, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the European Commission that focuses on early-stage technology-enabled creative business models in frontier and growing markets.
Read also Egyptian VC Algebra Ventures Lands $15m New Fund To Invest In Startups
FMO has made early investments in merchant payment platform Paymob (2020), salary payment platform Dopay (2019), and SME lender and marketplace Liwwa in the Middle East (2018). FMO continues to support the expansion of the Egyptian venture capital ecosystem with this investment in Algebra Ventures and other initiatives.
A Look At What Algebra Ventures Does
Read also Visa Backs Fintech Startup Bloom In $6.5M Seed Round, One Year After Issuing Its First Card In Sudan
Algebra Ventures is Egypt’s leading venture capital firm in the technology sector. Since 2016, we’ve been collaborating with fearless and resilient founders to build transformational businesses. While our entrepreneurs do the heavy lifting, we assist by providing multi-stage finance, supporting with strategy and operations, and assisting in the formation of star teams. We are a diverse and experienced team of founders, geeks, and operators that are passionate about the positive influence of technology on people’s lives in the Middle East and North Africa region.
Charles Rapulu Udoh
Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based lawyer, who has several years of experience working in Africa’s burgeoning tech startup industry. He has closed multi-million dollar deals bordering on venture capital, private equity, intellectual property (trademark, patent or design, etc.), mergers and acquisitions, in countries such as in the Delaware, New York, UK, Singapore, British Virgin Islands, South Africa, Nigeria etc. He’s also a corporate governance and cross-border data privacy and tax expert.
As an award-winning writer and researcher, he is passionate about telling the African startup story, and is one of the continent’s pioneers in this regard. You can book a session and speak with him using the link: https://insightsbyexperts.com/view_expert/charles-rapulu-udoh