Grace Ashiru
The South African venture capital firm Kalon Venture Partners wants to form a $50 million fund to invest in African firms outside of South Africa.
Kalon was started in 2016, and it invests in startups that have already started making money and have the potential for significant growth and impact. So far, the organization has helped 11 South African tech startups, such as Sendmarc, a company that works on cybersecurity, and Ozow, a company that makes payments.
CEO Clive Butkow says moving into additional African countries brings problems and chances. He said a product-market fit would be needed because different cultures, how people buy things, and the ideal client profiles are all different. The company wants to hire people in the nations where they want to invest so that they can be there and learn the local markets.
The move comes as the tech environment on the African continent continues to flourish and more investors look to join the region’s growing startup industry.
