Climate change technology VC Satgana closes first fund targeting early-stage startups in Africa and Europe

Image credits: Satgana

Climate change technology venture Satgana has reached the final deadline for its first fund, which aims to support up to 30 early-stage startups in Africa and Europe.

The VC firm ended up raising £8m ($8m) after receiving commitments from family offices and high-net-worth individuals including Publicis Groupe’s Maurice Levy and Back Market co-founder Thibaut-Hugues de Larose. Achieved $8.6 million in funding.

Romain Diaz, founder and general partner of Satgana, told TechCrunch that the company closed the fund early, below its initial target, and focused on investing and supporting the portfolio due to a more challenging fundraising environment for novice fund managers. He said he had decided to do so. companies.

“We launched the fund in mid-2022 and have raised capital during the most difficult period since 2015. We have been able to make 13 investments and with our current capital commitments. We know we can execute on our strategy of investing in 30 companies around the world.”This first fund will also include follow-on investments,” Diaz said.

“This also paves the way for new funds to be launched in the next few years, possibly different funds with different strategies, such as one for Europe and one for Africa, but that will come later. “For now, we are seriously focused on managing this fund properly,” he said.

The VC firm will invest up to €300,000 ($32,000) in early-stage startups working to mitigate climate change and build resilience, with a focus on mobility, food and agriculture, energy, industry, architecture, and circular economy subsectors. The company has invested $5,000.

The company’s investments in Africa include Amini, a startup closing the environmental data gap in Africa, and Mazi Mobility, a Kenyan mobility-as-a-service startup working to develop a network of battery swapping infrastructure. Kubik upcycles plastic and operates in Ethiopia. Revivo is a B2B marketplace that sells electronic spare parts that give new life to products such as phones. In Europe, Satgana has invested in Rebel Tech, Orbio Earth, Yeasty, Loewi, Arda, Fullsoon and Fermify.

Dias founded a VC firm after gaining 10 years of experience in the venture space in several African countries, including Morocco and South Africa, where he co-founded and ran a venture studio.

“I did that for about five years, but about six years ago I really started waking up to the scale of climate change. “We decided to focus solely on investing in the founders of climate change technology,” he said.

Diaz, who started his VC firm after moving to Europe, said he has the right investment network in place, especially one focused on investing with pre-seed founders.

Satgana’s focus on Africa was also driven by the fact that Africa is the most vulnerable continent, despite having the lowest greenhouse gas emissions. They recently appointed Anil Magul as a partner to drive their Africa strategy.

“We are entering the continent to pursue green growth goals. We are deploying renewable energy, low-carbon buildings, mobility solutions and more. But we are also entering the continent to pursue green growth goals. We are also keen to invest because, unfortunately, the reality is that climate change is upon us and we already need solutions. This is especially true for those who are more exposed to the effects of climate change. It’s important for front-line workers who are often vulnerable communities, including women, people of color, and low-income communities,” Diaz said.

“From an impact perspective, it’s important to invest in solutions. [traditionally] “We only receive a fraction of the VC funding,” he said.

Satgana is one of the new funds focused on Africa’s climate technology sector. These funds include the Africa People + Planet Fund by Novastar Ventures, Equator’s Fund, and the Catalyst Fund.