French-based Proparco invests $5 million to boost Egypt's fintech sector
Proparco, a French development finance institution, has committed $5 million to an early-stage venture capital fund managed by DisrupTech Ventures to boost Egypt's fintech sector and improve access to financial services in the country.
DisrupTech Ventures aims to provide seed capital to up to 28 startups, with a prime focus on financial technology services.
The fund raised $36 million from several investors, including development finance institutions, funds-of-funds, and family offices. DisrupTech Ventures will also provide advice and mentorship to the businesses it supports.
Egypt's digital transformation and financial inclusion are urgent, as the country's tech companies often struggle to raise capital to bring their innovations to market. The amount of venture capital available in Egypt is just a quarter of the emerging market average, though it has grown significantly in recent years. DisrupTech Ventures was established to support early-stage fintech and fintech-enabled digital services startups with a focus on Egypt.
The team partners with talented entrepreneurs to transform their vision into reality and aims to be a catalyst in transforming the larger financial services ecosystem in Egypt.
Françoise Lombard, CEO at Proparco, stated that the partnership with DisrupTech Ventures is in line with Proparco's strategy to maximize impacts and finance innovation by fostering the emergence of a dynamic venture capital industry to support African entrepreneurs.
Proparco has invested over €120 million in African early-stage companies and venture capital funds since 2020 through its Venture Capital programme.
