Outlierz Ventures, the Africa-focused Morocco-based B2B VC fund, has announced investments into a new set of startups bringing to eight investments across the continent’s key hubs.
Officially started in January 2019, the fund has invested in Bamboo, YouVerify, Asoko Insights and Healthlane.
According to Kenza Lahlou, co-founder and Managing Partner of Outlierz Ventures, “We are delighted to announce our new investments in three African technology companies and are very proud of the outstanding results of our portfolio. The African market represents a huge opportunity to build innovative tech-enabled platforms that transform traditional business models across key sectors of the economy.”
Lahlou says the crisis we are currently experiencing is accelerating this digital transformation as has been demonstrated by the recent acquisition of Paystack, a Nigerian fintech in payments, by the US leader, Stripe valued at $34B+, for over $200 million last October.
“This is a major event in the African tech ecosystem that, we are confident will catalyze others,” Lahlou added.
YouVerify automates and digitizes the KYC-check process (Know-Your-Customer) to enable corporates such as banks and telecom operators to digitally verify the identity of their customers and provide them with remote services.
Bamboo democratizes investment and access to capital markets by enabling Nigerians to seamlessly invest in the U.S. stock market from a mobile app directly connected to their Nigerian bank account.
Healthlane, which operates in Cameroon and Nigeria, offers a premium healthcare service in public hospitals, thus increasing their capacity and efficiency, in addition to digital services such as online appointment booking, telemedicine, and access to laboratory test results on a mobile app.
Outlierz Ventures has been able to achieve a remarkable performance in a short period of time with an outstanding fund return multiple to date, compared to the global venture capital industry standards.
Lahlou was this year selected to join the highly-selective circle of Kauffman Fellows dedicated to VC fund managers around the world. Outlierz Ventures is one of the few African funds to be part of this global network.