Toyota Tsusho Corporation
("Toyota Tsusho") has reiterated its commitment to invest in Verod-Kepple
Africa Ventures ("VKAV"), which is managed by
Verod-Kepple Africa Partners ("VKAP").
This investment, according to a statement
released, aims to support startups and pursue opportunities for business
synergies with Toyota Tsusho Group in Africa.
VKAV is the first fund launched by VKAP, which is a joint venture between Verod
Capital Management Limited, a private equity fund with a track record of
investing in and supporting the growth of small and medium-sized enterprises and
startups in Africa, and Kepple Africa Ventures, a venture capital firm that actively
invests in African startups.
VKAV plans to make investments
of 100 million USD in the five years from 2022 to 2026 in scalable,
tech-enabled, post-revenue businesses bringing about transformative change by
addressing difficult challenges across various industries on the continent.
Toyota Tsusho, together with its subsidiary CFAO SAS, established Mobility 54
Investment SAS ("Mobility 54"), a corporate venture capital firm
dedicated to investing in and financing mobility-related startups in Africa, in
October 2019. Since its establishment, Mobility 54 has invested approximately
28 million USD (as of the end of July 2022) in 14 startups and is expanding
its investment activities, accelerating the MaaS business in Africa and seeking
to solve social issues faced by the mobility sector.
In April 2021, Toyota Tsusho also invested in Samurai Africa Fund 2 Investment
Partnership, a fund managed by Samurai Incubate Inc., promoting scouting for
startups, including those in fields other than mobility.
This new investment is aimed at sourcing for startups in the healthcare,
consumer goods, carbon neutral, and other fields and pursuing business synergies
with Toyota Tsusho Group and Mobility 54.
Toyota Tsusho will contribute towards solving social issues in Africa based on
the "WITH AFRICA FOR AFRICA" philosophy that seeks to grow with the
people and communities of Africa along the business expansion.
