Traditional funds join the African tech party
Growing a tech ecosystem takes time, hustle, and a lot of venture capital.
VCs back bold founders with ideas that can solve problems, scale up, and bring in returns.
Since 2014, VCs have invested over $21 billion in African startups across 3,000 deals.
Today, venture capital is its own industry.
There was a time when only a small group of investors cut checks for African startups.
They had deep pockets and an unreal appetite for risk.
In reality, most VC investments will fail.
But one or two startups that win big, can drive real return.
Sometimes, funding dries up.
And when it does, the failure rates are even higher.
Last year, big-name startups like Sendy, [54Gene](https://techcabal.com/2023/09/27/54gene-shutting-down-operations/#:~:text=Genomics startup 54gene has initiated,the process in July 2023.), and [Zumi](https://disruptafrica.com/2023/03/23/kenyan-b2b-e-commerce-startup-zumi-closes-after-failing-to-secure-funding/#:~:text=Kenyan B2B e-commerce startup Zumi has closed down after,into e-commerce in 2020.) shut down publicly.
Genomic firm 54Gene shut down last year.
When this happens, VCs eat the loss.
For years VCs have bet on tech despite the risks.
But traditional investors, like individuals, investment firms, pensions or private equity funds, prefer to stick to the basics.