Africa-focused Japanese venture firm UNCOVERED FUND has invested an undisclosed amount in Nigerian home financing startup Bongalow, a mobile-powered home financing marketplace that enables Africans at home and abroad shop for the best home loan to purchase their desired property. Bongalow’s mobile-powered home financing platform enables aspiring homeowners to save towards a down payment, shop for a home loan, and access Bongalow’s rent-to-own financing facilities.
CEO of UNCOVERED FUND Takuma Terakubo
This investment from UNCOVERED FUND is part of a wider seed round that also includes Future Africa, Kepple Africa Ventures, ARM, Magic Fund, a bank CEO in Nigeria, and a host of other angel investors. The full size of the round is yet to be confirmed, but all capital is being used to further solidify Bongalow’s presence in the market.
Kelechi Nwokocha, Bongalow’s CEO said that “We are happy to receive significant interest from Asian investors in our round and welcome UNCOVERED FUND onboard our journey to create what we believe will be the go-to-platform for aspiring homeowners in Africa,.”
Reacting to the development, the CEO of UNCOVERED FUND Takuma Terakubo said he was excited to partner with Bongalow at a pivotal point in its journey. “We are thrilled by the quality and dexterity of the management team and the measurable success achieved so far,” he said.
“We have witnessed the transformative impact of home ownership on Asian families and believe Bongalow is well positioned to replicate the same on the African continent. The investment in Bongalow further solidifies our presence on the continent and diversifies our exposure to proptech, which is an emerging frontier on the continent.”
Kelechi Deca
Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry
The dreams of a young Japanese venture capitalist, Takuma Terakubo, of investing in up to 200 African startups in the next few years are still very much alive. From launching a US$4.5m fund with Leapfrog Ventures in 2018 to launching another $18m fund under Samurai Incubate Africa in 2020, Terakubo’s latest move is that he has doled out yet another $15m venture capital fund, specifically targeting African startups, under the name Uncovered Fund. Not that he likes the use-and-dump approach, but that he has found a way of investing differently.
Japanese venture capitalist, Takuma Terakubo
“We do not make scattered, one-shot, small investments, but rather we provide long-term growth support, including follow-on investment. In addition, we not only invest, but we also multiply the huge assets of Japanese companies to grow the business and provide technical support and finance as well,” Terakubo said, of the latest fund.
The VC which was formed in 2020, and which has its offices in Kenya, Nigeria and South Africa, had already made investments. It had invested in Kenyan e-commerce company Sky.Garden and Nigerian e-health start-up RxAll in December last year, while Togolese super app Gozem, Kenyan fintech startup LipaLater, and Nigerian logistics platform SEND Technologies have been funded so far this year.
“We are looking for African startups to expand their business across multiple countries. So, we welcome startups from any country as long as the business can scale,” said Terakubo.
The new Fund which will provide $50k-500k investment and growth support for seed early stage African startups, will close for investors at the end of June 2021.
“In 2017, when I visited Africa for the first time, I witnessed a world where startups are creating living infrastructure related to energy, public transportation, logistics, medical care, etc., for people. These are things usually created by the government. I still remember trembling from the bottom of my heart as to whether we could take on such a big challenge in Africa… I think that Africa has a great digital economy future, I mean the way everything is being created at a tremendous speed centered on digital,” Terakubo said.
Uncovered Fund, once again, joins a host of other Japanese VCs actively investing in early stage startups in Africa. Kepple Africa Ventures, active since 2019, has invested in car listing platform AutoChek as well as in Kenya’s UTU Tech. Mobility 54 Investment Fund of Toyota Tsusho has been active in the continent’s mobility sector, investing, notably, in Uganda’s Tugende, Kenya’s Data Integrated and Sendy, South Africa’s WhereIsMyTransport, among others.
The new fund will target startups in the following areas:
1. Retail: Sales promotion, business management and distribution DX support for retail stores where 90% are operated as individual stores
2. Fintech: A lending and payment method that meets the rapidly increasing purchasing demand of the middle class in Africa
3. Health Tech: Build a digital medical system that allows everyone to access the medical care and medicines they need with less burden 4. Logistics: Streamline logistics, reduce costs, streamline the movement of goods through traceability and cold chains.
5. MaaS: Reduce waste of travel by utilizing data that is environmentally friendly and optimizes the movement of people in Africa, where there is no public transportation.
6. Agri / FoodTech: Sustainable nutrition supply to meet food demand and improvement of livestock and agricultural productivity
7. Smart City: Formation of a decentralized and sustainable recycling-oriented society that supports urban development in Africa.
How To Pitch
Visit Uncovered Fund’s website for more information.
Charles Rapulu Udoh
Charles Rapulu Udoh is a Lagos-based lawyer who has advised startups across Africa on issues such as startup funding (Venture Capital, Debt financing, private equity, angel investing etc), taxation, strategies, etc. He also has special focus on the protection of business or brands’ intellectual property rights ( such as trademark, patent or design) across Africa and other foreign jurisdictions. He is well versed on issues of ESG (sustainability), media and entertainment law, corporate finance and governance. He is also an award-winning writer
