FUNDING | Pan African VC, Norrsken22, Raises $205 Million in its Maiden Fund for Growth Stage Startups

Pan-African venture capital firm, Norrsken22, has announced the conclusion of its first fund’s fundraising with a total of $205 million.

The fund will focus on growth-stage entrepreneurs developing:

• Fintech
• Edtech
• Healthtech

across Africa.

Norrsken22 intends to make investments in approximately 20 startups across the continent, with individual investment sizes ranging from $10 million to $16 million.

“There are huge opportunities in Africa. We are excited to continue our mission of driving funding into African tech, and creating jobs and sustainable growth in the region,” Niklas Adalberth, Founder of Norrsken Foundation, said.

The $205 million fund, known as the Norrsken22 African Tech Growth Fund, received backing from more than 30 unicorn founders, both from the local African ecosystem and foreign contributors, including:

• Olugbenga Agboola, Co-Founder and CEO, Flutterwave
• Niklas Zennström, Co-Founder, Skype
• Jacob de Geer, Co-Founder, iZettle
• Niklas Östberg, Co-Founder, Delivery Hero
• Carl Manneh, Co-Founder, Mojang
• Sebastian Knutsson, Co-Founder, King
• Willard Ahdritz, Founder, Kobalt Music

“The timing of the fund ideally positions Norrsken22 to support a growing African tech tailwind,” says Natalie Kolbe, Managing Partner of Norrsken22. “The transformative power of technology can leapfrog traditional ways of doing business, and Africa has the opportunity to lead the World with its solutions.”

“We are excited to be partnering with so many promising startups that can have a positive impact across Africa. We are delighted to see an active and growing early-stage investor community growing across the continent, however, we still see a gap at growth stage tech funding in the continent,” Kolbe said.

Norrsken22, which is behind The Norrsken House in Kigali, Rwanda, has already made five investments in its portfolio in 2023, which includes:

• Tyme Bank – South African challenger bank
• Sabi – The African business-to-business digital commerce platform
• Smile ID – Africa’s leading identity verification solution
• AutoChek – The auto financing platform

Norrsken22 was established in 2022, founded by:

• Niklas Adalberth, the Founder of the Norrsken Foundation and payments unicorn, Klarna, and
• Hans Otterling, a Partner at the technology investment firm, Northzone

The firm presently operates on the ground in several African countries, including:

• Nigeria
• South Africa
• Kenya, and
• Ghana