Japanese-backed pan-African VC with 100+ investments
Kepple Africa Ventures is a Japanese-backed pan-African VC fund with one of the highest investment frequencies on the continent. Its African activity now runs mainly through Verod-Kepple Africa Ventures, which closed a first fund at US$60M in April 2024 to back up to 21 companies at Series A and B. Individual cheques are not published as a standard range. Known for providing intros to Japanese corporate partners and strategic investors looking to enter African markets.
Use when
You're raising pre-seed or seed and want a high-velocity investor who can also open doors to Japanese strategic partners.
Skip when
You are pre-seed or seed. The current vehicle is aimed at Series A and B, which is a different stage from the small cheques Kepple was once known for.
Status (24 Sep 2026): Kepple's African activity now runs mainly through Verod-Kepple Africa Ventures, the joint venture with Verod Capital, which closed its first fund at US$60 million in April 2024 to back up to 21 companies at Series A and B. Individual cheques are not published as a standard range; a disclosed Series A into mTek Services was US$1.25 million. Kepple itself was previously one of the most prolific small-cheque investors on the continent, so older profiles describing many tiny tickets describe the earlier model, not this one.
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