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Catalyst Fund, a pre-seed venture capital fund and accelerator focused on fostering climate resilience innovation in Africa, has announced the successful first close of its targeted US$40 million fund, with over 20% committed.
Investors who support Catalyst Fund’s mission to expand the reach and impact of pre-seed businesses at the forefront of creating a climate-resilient future in Africa include FSD Africa, FSDAi, Cisco Foundation, USAID Prosper Africa, and seasoned tech investor Andrew Bredenkamp.
With assistance from JPMorgan Chase & Co. and the Global Environmental Facility, Catalyst Fund also seeks to help climate innovators with specialized research and effect assessment support, share knowledge and lessons learned, and foster relationships through its Ecosystem Hub.
Catalyst Fund is accelerating sustainable green growth by strategically focusing on solutions in agri-tech and fishery management, food systems, insurtech and climate finance, cold chain, waste management, and water management.
The main focus will be on finding ways to help communities become more resilient over the long term, adjust their livelihoods to climate change, and better prepare for and handle shocks.
“By blending equity investments with hands-on venture building, we believe we can unlock tremendous potential for innovative companies on the continent. Supporting ventures at the pre-seed stage requires more than capital. Our venture builders are the engineers, data scientists, and growth marketing experts who can supercharge founders’ journeys toward building scalable and highly impactful ventures,” said Maelis Carraro, managing partner of the Catalyst Fund.
The fund will provide important early-stage funding for 40 pre-seed startups and match it with hands-on, tailor-made venture-building support to accelerate the growth of startups. The fund’s primary focus will be on backing mission-driven local and female founders.
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