During a recent investor meeting, early-stage African investor Oui Capital announced to its limited partners that it had successfully returned its $4 million inaugural fund following the divestment of certain shares in the business banking platform Moniepoint.
Moniepoint has emerged as a prominent investment for the five-year-old Oui Capital. At the inception of its first fund, it invested $150,000 in the Nigeria-based firm, an early investment that has yielded an impressive $8 million return—sufficient to recoup the fund’s total amount.
Last October, Moniepoint secured $110 million in funding at a valuation of $1 billion during a Series C round, led by Development Partners International, at which point Oui Capital sold part of its shares. With the fund now reimbursed, any subsequent gains will represent pure profit for its investors.
Achieving such a return is a notable accomplishment for a young venture capital (VC) firm—many globally struggle to repay their initial funds and such occurrences are even rarer within Africa’s venture capital landscape. This success highlights the lucrative potential of early-stage investments in fintech across the continent. Oui Capital joins other pan-African investors, including CRE VC and 4DX Ventures, who have also returned their inaugural funds after backing other successful unicorns like Andela and Flutterwave, as confirmed by sources familiar with the continent’s investor activities.
StartupSuperb reached out to Oui Capital for a statement, and the firm acknowledged the development.
Moniepoint, formerly known as TeamApt, was not widely recognised in 2019 when Oui Capital first invested. At that time, the firm primarily developed financial products and software for both its own use and for banks.
Oui Capital, co-founded by Olu Oyinsan and Francesco Andreoli, was among the initial investors and one of the few to support Moniepoint’s transition to a business banking and payments platform, which has grown to be Nigeria’s largest merchant acquirer.
The co-founder and CEO of Moniepoint, Tosin Enioluwadara, reflected on Oui Capital’s involvement, stating that the firm had supported them through various phases, from establishing product-market fit to achieving production. He mentioned that Olu, as managing partner at Oui Capital, played a vital advisory role, assisting with strategy, governance, and critical issues affecting the company. Their contributions also extended to investment campaigns, facilitating introductions to potential investors and helping shape the firm’s narrative and positioning.
Exits in Africa’s technology sector remain infrequent, with only 143 out of 2,971 venture deals since 2019 resulting in exits, according to The Big Deal. Most startups continue to be in their early or growth stages, far from the level of maturity necessary for substantial exits. In contrast, developed markets boast robust M&A and IPO opportunities, making it challenging for Africa’s tech sector, which is still evolving, to position many startups for exits.
Moreover, venture investments generally require a maturation period of 5-10 years, leading many African-focused VC firms to await returns. For Oui Capital, this duration was five years. At the time of its initial investment in Moniepoint’s seed round, the company was valued at $12.5 million, as noted in an investor report reviewed by StartupSuperb.
Smaller funds are often easier to return due to their size, as indicated by data from Cambridge Associates, which develops and manages investment portfolios for institutional investors.
However, Oyinsan attributes the fund’s successful traction to its portfolio construction rather than merely the fund size, emphasising the importance of investment choices, entry pricing, equity ownership, investment amounts, and timing of exits, according to statements made to StartupSuperb.
Oui Capital’s portfolio also features other startups, including Duplo, which enhances payment flows for African B2B companies; Maad, a B2B e-commerce platform for fast-moving consumer goods; and Matta, a B2B marketplace specializing in chemicals from its first fund, Mentors Fund 1.
Currently, the investor has 22 startups across two funds and provides investments of up to $400,000 for seed-stage startups across Africa.
In 2022, Oui Capital initiated a second fund, Mentors Fund 2. Although the early-stage firm aimed for $30 million, it ultimately closed at $12 million, as stated by Oyinsan. He further explained that, given the firm’s strong position, there are no immediate plans to expedite fundraising, but a potential third fund may be launched later in the year.