Alitheia IDF

Alitheia IDF is Africa's first and largest gender-lens private equity fund, managing $100 million in capital. Co-founded in 2014 by Tokunboh Ishmael and Polo Leteka, the fund is managed by two women-led firms: Alitheia Capital, headquartered in Lagos, Nigeria, and IDF Capital, based in Johannesburg, South Africa. The fund identifies, invests in, and grows SMEs led by gender-diverse teams across the continent. Alitheia IDF invests primarily in growth-stage companies across six African countries: Nigeria, South Africa, Ghana, Zambia, Zimbabwe, and Lesotho. The fund focuses on sectors including fintech, cybersecurity, e-commerce and retail, and artificial intelligence and analytics. Recent investments include Lupiya, a digital lending platform in Zambia; Seamfix, a digital identity solutions provider in Nigeria; Sweepsouth, a home services platform in South Africa; and Jetstream Africa, an AI-powered incident reporting system in Ghana. The fund has deployed over $75 million across its portfolio, creating approximately 2,000 direct jobs and over 850,000 indirect jobs. Central to Alitheia IDF's strategy is leveraging gender diversity as a driver of superior financial and social returns. The fund's portfolio demonstrates significant impact, with 73 percent of portfolio companies women-owned and 54 percent having women on their boards. This approach aligns with broader development goals including gender equality, climate resilience, and digital transformation across African economies.