While venture capital in Africa has historically been dominated by the “Big Four” (Nigeria, Kenya, Egypt, and South Africa), the Francophone region is often framed as the continent’s next frontier. However, disclosed data from 2025 reveals a landscape that is still remarkably sparse.

Unlike the dense, operator-led angel networks of Lagos or Nairobi, the Francophone ecosystem currently relies on a handful of formalized groups and diaspora-led syndicates. With only 13 disclosed angel-involved deals across the region in 2025, the narrative is one of nascent development rather than a “teeming” market.

The Leaders: Cameroon and Senegal Take the Reins

The most consistent activity in 2025 came from Cameroon and Senegal, driven by established networks that are increasingly coordinating across borders.

• Cameroon Angels Network (CAN): Remains the most active formalized group in the region. They participated in the year’s standout deal: the $1.8m pre-seed for fintech REasy.1 More importantly, CAN continues to provide critical floor-level liquidity for local SaaS, as seen in their $30,000 investment into Genuka.
• Dakar Network Angels (DNA): Following a pan-African mandate, DNA co-invested in Cameroon’s REasy.2 Senegal also saw high-conviction individual activity, notably from Sékou Dramé, who participated in KaliSpot’s significant $4m mixed debt and equity round.

North African Maturation: Tunisia and Morocco

In North Africa, the lines between “angel” and “institutional seed” capital are increasingly blurred.

• Tunisia: The ecosystem is moving toward institutionalized angel-stage funds like 216 Capital Ventures and Go Big Partners, who co-invested in legaltech startup Juridoc. The $9m seed round for AI startup Thunders also featured unnamed angels, suggesting that high-net-worth individuals are comfortable participating in much larger, institutional-led rounds. Thunders is also based in France, and the founders recently exited their first startup through an acquisition, which makes the case for Tunisian angels more challenging.
• Morocco: Activity remains largely individual and informal. A notable $600k pre-seed for Washminute was backed by an unnamed investor from the Moroccan sports sector, highlighting that wealth from outside the tech industry is starting to trickle in. Mfounders is also an active diaspora angels network targeting Moroccan startups but its activities were limited in 2025. 

Disclosed Angel Deals in 2025 (Francophone Africa)

The Missing “Operator Angel”

The 2025 data reveals a notable gap: the lack of disclosed investments from successful local entrepreneurs. While figures such as Hassan Bourgi and Régis Bamba (Djamo) are celebrated ecosystem champions, their roles as individual angels remain largely private or minimal compared to their counterparts in Anglophone Africa. Axel Peyriere, co-founder of AUTO24.africa, did participate in Zazu Global’s $1M seed round in December, but overall, investments from these key figures remain limited.

Furthermore, the “Solo Super-Angel” — the individual writing $500k+ checks — has yet to emerge in the region. Instead, 2025 was the year of the syndicate. In almost every deal exceeding $1m, angels were participants alongside VCs like Launch Africa Ventures or 54 Collective, rather than leads.

The Côte d’Ivoire Anomaly: Despite Abidjan being a primary tech hub, there were zero disclosed angel investments in Ivorian startups according to our data. This suggests either a high level of deal privacy or a lag in formalizing the local angel networks compared to its neighbors

The Diaspora Bridge

The “French Connection” remains a vital lifeline. Bridging Angels and individuals like Bruno Akpaka (invested in Morocco’s ToumAI) represent a growing trend of the Francophone diaspora in Europe acting as the first institutional-grade check for founders back home. This cross-continental flow is often what bridges the gap between a founder’s “friends and family” round and a formal pre-seed.

Summary of the 2025 Landscape

• Scale: Small. About 13 deals disclosed.
• Networks: 4 formalized networks (CAN, DNA, BBAN, Tunisia-based groups) are doing the heavy lifting.
• Check Sizes: Highly fragmented, ranging from $30k to participation in $9m rounds.
• Sector Bias: High interest in Fintech (3 deals) and AI (2 deals), but surprisingly diverse activity in infant nutrition [Benin Benin Business Angel Network (BBAN) Invested in: Qualipharm (undisclosed, Benin infant nutrition)] and fleet management.

Further Reading: 

• Every African Tech Investment Tracked in 2025 — All in One Place. Download Now.
• The Most Up-to-Date List of Funds, Angel Investors and Active VCs African Startups Can Pitch to in 2026 (1000+)— Before Everyone Else. Download Now.
• New VC Firms and Funds Backing African Startups in 2026 . Download Now.