NIFC Plans Sh65B Kenya Startup Fund, Half for Tech and AI

In Short

The Nairobi International Financial Centre (NIFC) plans to set up a Sh65 billion ($500 million) Kenya startup fund. NIFC says half the money will go to technology and AI startups.

What Happened

NIFC says the proposed fund will finance technology businesses, artificial intelligence (AI) companies and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). AI is software that can learn patterns from data to do tasks like predictions or text generation.

NIFC says Sh32.5 billion ($250 million) of the fund will target technology and AI startups. The remaining Sh32.5 billion ($250 million) will finance businesses in other sectors.

The fund is expected to bring together local and international venture capitalists. NIFC says it will lead fundraising and assess startups for investment.

Daniel Mainda, NIFC chief executive, said the initiative is meant to address challenges Kenyan startups face in accessing capital as international investors become more selective about deploying money into African markets.

“Access to capital is a challenge for Kenyan startups, so how can we provide capital for these startups? That’s why we want to co-host a fund of $500 million so that we can deploy it into that segment,” Mr Mainda said.

NIFC says it has started selecting an organisation to co-host the fund alongside a professional fund manager. Mr Mainda said investors are already interested, with NIFC coordinating efforts to mobilise capital and identify businesses for investment.

Why It Matters

NIFC says the fund could expand Nairobi’s role in Africa’s technology financing ecosystem by linking international investors with businesses seeking capital to develop and scale. NIFC also says it extends its investment mandate beyond attracting financial institutions and investment funds to facilitating the deployment of money into the wider Kenyan economy.