Paris-based venture capital firm Partech is making a bold statement in African tech by deploying its €280 million Partech Africa II fund with remarkable speed and vigour.
In May 2025 alone, the firm led four major investments across Nigeria, Egypt, and South Africa—demonstrating its commitment to backing the continent’s most promising startups despite a challenging venture capital environment.
The deals ranged from emergency response marketplaces to early-stage fintech.
Following the fund’s final close in late 2024, this activity represents one of the firm’s busiest months and highlights its refined approach to Africa’s erratic but highly promising tech industry.
The investments made by Partech Africa in May, covering four startups in Nigeria, Egypt, and South Africa, include the following:
Carrot Credit (Nigeria): Partech joined US-based Authentic Ventures and MaC Venture Capital to participate in a $4.2 million seed round for this lending platform that lets users borrow against digital investment assets.
Nawy (Egypt): a $75 million financing round with $23 million in debt and $52 million in equity. This financing round is currently one of Egypt’s biggest proptech raises to date. Partech spearheaded the equity round.
MoneyFellows (Egypt): Partech partnered with CommerzVentures (Germany), Nclude (Egypt), and Al Mada Ventures (Morocco) to make investments of $13 million in a pre-Series C round in this digital group savings platform.
AURA (South Africa): Partech and the Cathay AfricInvest Innovation Fund (Mauritius) co-led a $15 million Series B round in an emergency services marketplace.
With ticket prices ranging from $1 million to $15 million, the deals are in line with Partech’s stated strategy of supporting high-growth African startups from Seed to Series C.
Partech steps in amid investors’ decline
Partech’s aggressive deal-making stands out in a market where venture capital activity is cooling, given that active investors in Africa dropped by half compared to the previous year, according to Partech’s 2023 Africa Tech VC report.
After closing its second Africa-focused fund at its €280 million hard cap in December 2024, Partech has positioned itself as a lead or anchor investor to reduce transaction risk and attract co-investors.
General Partner Cyril Collon noted strong investor loyalty, with many renewing and increasing commitments. New backers include major development finance institutions and sovereign wealth funds such as Africa Re and Dubai Future District Fund.
Among the notable DFIs on the roster are Bpifrance, FMO, KfW, EIB, and IFC.
A change in Partech’s geographic priorities could be indicated by the company’s excessive activity in Egypt. Nawy and MoneyFellows, two of the company’s May 2025 investments, are based in Egypt and together represent $65 million in equity.
Egypt’s Nawy stands out
The size of Nawy’s $75 million round is especially noteworthy. A group of investors from the U.S., Africa, and the Middle East, including Plug and Play, Shorooq Partners, e& Capital, and Outliers VC, came together for the deal. Even though macroeconomic issues like inflation and currency devaluation continue to impact the local startup ecosystem, Partech’s leading role shows confidence in Egypt’s real estate digitalisation.
Meanwhile, MoneyFellows expands on Partech’s preexisting fintech thesis. The Cairo-based startup is digitalising traditional ROSCAs (Rotating Savings and Credit Associations), which remain a popular informal savings option in African markets.
West, North, East, and Southern Africa are currently included in Partech’s reach. In addition to its current offices in Dakar, Nairobi, and Dubai, the company recently opened a new one in Lagos.
The company is actively hiring for a variety of roles, including investment analysts and portfolio strategy leads, and its Lagos location will act as a centre for West African deal sourcing and portfolio support.
“Being on the ground enables us to better understand local contexts, support founders more closely, and navigate regulatory and operational environments with more agility,” said General Partner Tidjane Deme, highlighting the importance of the local presence in Partech’s business model.
Partech Africa II to invest in over 20 startups
With an emphasis on creating more specialised positions, Partech Africa II seeks to invest in 20–25 startups. The expansion indicates a more purposeful, value-creation strategy in contrast to Fund I’s portfolio of 17 companies.
Partech’s deployment’s scope and velocity contrast with the caution currently displayed by many African venture firms, which are battling declining valuations, regulatory uncertainty, and currency volatility.
However, Partech is placing a wager that a long-term thesis, when paired with a local presence and international investor relationships, can give them an advantage in spotting scalable, long-lasting businesses.
However, there are still concerns regarding exit routes, particularly given the irregularity of IPOs and M&A activity on the continent. According to Partech, it is actively hiring professionals to support value creation across its portfolio in addition to investing in growth, operational support, and exit strategy.
Partech is currently one of the few companies on the African tech scene indicating expansion rather than contraction, with €280 million in dry powder and a flurry of deals under its belt. May’s four deals suggest the firm is serious about delivering on that signal.
