The International Finance Corporation (IFC) has approved an investment of up to US$6 million in a pan-African venture capital fund managed by First Circle Capital, a female-led firm supporting early-stage fintech startups across Africa.
The commitment comprises up to US$4 million through IFC’s Startup Catalyst Platform and an additional US$2 million from the Women Entrepreneurs Finance Initiative (We-Fi), which IFC implements.
Both investments will be made on a pari-passu basis, with no concessional terms, and are intended to mobilise institutional capital into one of the few women-led funds within Africa’s venture capital landscape.
According to Launch Base Africa, this investment highlights a broader push to support underrepresented fund managers and gender-lens strategies across the continent.
First Circle Capital’s Africa Fund I is targeting total commitments of US$25 million, with a hard cap of US$30 million.
The fund focuses on pre-seed and seed-stage investments in fintech companies, with an emphasis on sectors beyond payments, including financial infrastructure, insurtech, alternative lending, regtech, interoperability, and climate fintech.
Though registered as a limited partnership in Delaware, the fund operates primarily from offices in Casablanca and Kampala.
It is managed by co-founders Selma Ribica, a former M-Pesa executive and early-stage fintech investor, and Agnes Aistleitner Kisuule, an entrepreneur experienced in building companies in frontier markets.
Both bring operational expertise and a pan-African network to the firm’s investment approach.
The IFC’s investment comes amid growing global interest in Africa’s fintech sector.
Reports by Boston Consulting Group and QED identify Africa as the fastest-growing fintech market globally, with revenues projected to grow 13-fold by 2030.
Despite this trajectory, funding for early-stage ventures, particularly those led by women, remains limited.
We-Fi’s co-investment is intended to bolster the fund’s capital base and support gender inclusion within its investment strategy.
The fund is expected to implement gender-smart investing practices, including specific targets for investing in women-founded or women-led fintech startups.
This gender-lens approach aligns with broader efforts by institutional investors to direct capital to underrepresented fund managers and founders.
First Circle Capital is among a small but increasing number of African-focused venture funds led by women.
Earlier in the year, the FSDAi Nyala Facility, a vehicle established by FSD Africa Investments, committed US$1 million to First Circle Capital.
FSDAi Chief Investment Officer, Anne-Marie Chidzero, stated:
“First Circle stands out as a thesis-led, specialised fund with exceptional expertise in the fintech sector. We believe our support will catalyse further institutional LP investment.”
The FSDAi Nyala Facility supports emerging fund managers, particularly those incorporating gender-lens strategies or targeting small and growing businesses in Africa’s “missing middle”.
The initiative is backed by the UK government and operates across over 30 African markets.
To date, First Circle Capital has made 13 investments in fintech startups across seven African countries, covering areas such as SaaS for financial institutions, regulatory technology, and alternative lending.
The fund’s portfolio focuses on underrepresented segments of the fintech sector.
Backing from IFC, We-Fi, and FSDAi signals a broader institutional interest in supporting emerging managers and innovative models of financial inclusion. It also comes at a time when venture capital activity in Africa is affected by global macroeconomic challenges and reduced risk appetite among traditional investors.
First Circle Capital will also participate in IFC’s Startup Catalyst Booster Program, which provides emerging fund managers with capacity-building and support services.
The programme aims to strengthen the fund manager ecosystem in emerging markets and enhance access to capital for underserved founders.
With IFC’s investment, First Circle Capital’s Africa Fund I moves closer to its US$25 million fundraising goal, with the aim of advancing early-stage fintech development and financial inclusion across the continent.
Featured image credit: Edited by Fintech News Africa, based on image by halalstock via Freepik
