The Raba Partnership, an Africa-focused venture capital firm headquartered in Cape Town, has closed its second fund, raising $59.6 million to support startups across the continent, Launch Base Africa has learned. This new funding marks a significant milestone for the firm, which has built a strong reputation as an early investor in high-growth African tech ecosystems. The new capital infusion, known as Raba Partnership II, will target early-stage ventures in fintech, energy, and emerging digital infrastructure — a focal point for Raba’s strategy of fostering scalable, impact-driven African startups.
Since its inception in 2019, Raba has developed a portfolio that includes notable African fintech innovators such as Stitch, Octo, and Moment, a fintech venture linked with MultiChoice. The firm has consistently focused on financial technology and digital solutions that address pressing structural challenges across Africa, a continent where financial inclusion, reliable infrastructure, and digital services remain limited but crucial areas of growth.
The new fund has already deployed capital in companies like Egypt-based Octo, a digital payments and credit platform designed to offer flexible transaction options for consumers and small businesses. Octo enables users to deposit and withdraw cash at various points, make card-based payments, and access short-term credit at competitive rates. The platform reflects Raba’s commitment to advancing financial inclusion and mobility in the African market, addressing the financial needs of underserved populations in Egypt’s rapidly growing digital economy.
Another significant player in Raba’s portfolio is Stitch, a South African payments infrastructure provider. Stitch raised $25 million in a Series A extension round last year, with Raba participating alongside other global investors, including Ribbit Capital and PayPal Ventures. Stitch has since become instrumental in Africa’s digital payments landscape, offering APIs that allow companies to embed seamless financial services into their products, a key growth area in an ecosystem still underserved by traditional banking.
In previous investments, Raba also backed Thepeer, a now-defunct Nigerian API-based financial infrastructure company, which aimed to facilitate easier fund transfers across digital wallets and financial platforms. Despite Thepeer’s eventual shutdown, Raba’s investment underscored its early commitment to scalable digital solutions that address payment bottlenecks across the region.
Raba Partnership has distinguished itself by adopting a non-traditional venture model that emphasizes partnerships over mere capital provision. Founded by investor George Rzepecki, Raba takes a “team-oriented” approach, positioning itself as a partner rather than a standard venture fund. This partnership model allows the firm to provide more than financial backing, contributing strategic support and fostering long-term relationships with founders to help scale companies across diverse African markets.
Raba’s focus areas reflect this strategic intent. Beyond fintech, the firm has expressed interest in clean technology, renewable energy, and other critical infrastructure areas. With this second fund, Raba plans to target companies in high-impact sectors that facilitate the movement of capital and essential services, enabling broader access to financial, energy, and digital products for underserved communities across Africa.
As Africa’s venture capital landscape evolves, funds like Raba Partnership II underscore a growing appetite for local innovation and high-impact investments. African startups raised over $5 billion in venture capital in 2022 alone, an increase driven by a mix of local challenges and digital demand across banking, healthcare, and logistics. Raba’s consistent focus on fintech aligns with broader investor interest, as payments, credit, and decentralized finance solutions become essential to closing Africa’s financial inclusion gap.
With this second fund, Raba aims to capitalize on a growing momentum among African entrepreneurs tackling these challenges. The firm’s typical check sizes range from $100,000 to $3 million, with capital deployed at the earliest stages when Raba’s strategic involvement can have an outsized effect on company trajectories. Raba’s geographic focus remains on the African continent, with a particular emphasis on high-growth hubs in Nigeria, South Africa, Egypt, and Kenya.
In a region where economic development and social impact are deeply intertwined, Raba’s philosophy resonates with a new generation of investors and founders. The firm’s network of limited partners, who have committed to long-term impact in Africa, provides Raba with a stable base to make unconventional, thesis-driven investments. These LPs include seasoned company builders with experience in navigating emerging markets, adding depth to Raba’s investment insights and enabling a supportive, founder-centric approach.
With Raba Partnership II, the firm will continue to support a new wave of African entrepreneurs who are building companies capable of solving real-world challenges. By prioritizing fintech, clean energy, and foundational digital infrastructure, Raba Partnership aims to build a portfolio that catalyzes lasting change in Africa’s business landscape.
As the continent’s tech sector evolves, the infusion of patient, high-impact capital from funds like Raba Partnership II is poised to play an instrumental role in shaping Africa’s next generation of industry leaders and category-defining companies.