Renew Capital, a pan-African impact investment firm has made its first investment in Ghana with Affinity, a fintech company, to help it expand across Africa.
This is also Renew Capital’s first investment in Africa, coming just a month after the launch of its latest tech fund — Renew Venture Lab Fund 2 — in February 2024. It plans to invest in asset-light, tech-enabled businesses throughout Africa.
Launch Africa Ventures announced on March 23, 2024, that it had invested in Affinity and added the Affinity to its portfolio companies before the investment from Renew Capital.
Renew Capital claims to support innovative companies with high growth potential and manages investments for Renew Capital Angels.
Before launching the new tech fund in February 2023, the firm launched the Renew Venture Lab Fund series for early-stage tech companies, which took a “founder first” approach.
As Renew Venture Lab Fund 1 closed, Renew Capital launched Renew Venture Lab Fund 2 (RVL2), which will invest in approximately 50 tech startups across Africa.
According to Renew Capital, “the most successful companies in RVL2 will be eligible for larger investments from Renew Capital Fund 1, the firm’s growth-stage investment fund.”
Following the investment in Affinity, JC Oelofse, Renew Capital’s head of investment, stated that this is Renew Capital’s first investment in Ghana and that they look forward to supporting its expansion goals across the continent, as there are still millions of people to reach in terms of financial inclusion.
Affinity, a digital banking platform operating since 2010, acquired a microfinance business in Ghana in February 2020 and received a savings and loan license from the Bank of Ghana in March 2022.
It offers various services such as current, savings, and investment accounts, as well as transfers, payments, and loans. It also aims to increase financial inclusion in Africa’s financially excluded populations.
The foundation of Affinity’s strategy for promoting financial inclusion, according to CEO and founder Tarek Mouganie, is affordability, fully digital channels, and low-cost deposits.
“At Affinity, we’ve developed a fully integrated platform dedicated to promoting financial inclusion by effectively addressing the challenges faced by individuals and MSMEs without access to financial services across sub-Saharan Africa,” the CEO said.
