AVCA Conference

22 - 26 April 2024
Johannesburg, South Africa

Formats

Professional Development Programmes

Registration 7:30 am - 8:30 am

8:30 am - 5:30 pm

Legal Agreements Masterclass

This Masterclass is for legal professionals who want to enhance their knowledge of African private capital. Learn legal agreements best practices, common pitfalls and key commercial issues throughout this intensive training course.

8:30 am - 5:30 pm

Private Capital Funds Masterclass

The Masterclass will provide insights into investing in and managing Private Capital Funds in emerging markets in Africa. We will address topics across the fund cycle from both GP and LP perspectives. Some topics include; Fund Structures, Fund Governance, Valuations, Due Diligence, and ESG considerations.

VC Summit

Registration 7:00 am - 6:00 pm

8:55 am - 9:00 am

Opening Remarks

Abi Mustapha-Maduakor Chief Executive Officer, AVCA

9:00 am - 9:15 am

Opening Keynote

Nadir Mohammed Regional Director, Equitable Growth, Finance & Institutions (EFI), Middle East & North Africa Region, World Bank Group

9:15 am - 9:20 am

Morning Chair Introduction

9:20 am - 10:05 am

Panel 1: On the Rise – Venture Capital and Early-stage investing in Africa Catapulting

Africa’s early-stage investment landscape has proven bullish despite surging inflation, an unfavourable macroeconomic climate, and contractions in startup funding within the global venture market. This panel chronicles the maturation of Africa’s entrepreneurial space, investigating the catalysts for its exponential growth and what changes can be expected as the asset class continues to take off. It also explores the rise of venture capital investing in Africa and the role of managers in supporting the entrepreneurial ecosystem on the continent.

Idris Bello Managing Partner, LoftyInc Capital Management

Maurizio Caio Founder and Managing Partner, TLcom Capital

Dina El Shenoufy Chief Investment Officer, Flat6Labs

Brian Waswani Odhiambo Partner, Novastar Ventures

Shruti Chandrasekhar Head of Investments, Africa Region , International Finance Corporation (IFC) (moderator)

10:05 am - 10:50 am

Panel 2: The Giant that is Fintech

FinTech is the biggest buzzword in Africa’s innovation ecosystem, continually assuming the lion’s share of the volume and value of venture capital being channelled to the continent. This panel discusses the history and evolution of financial technology in Africa to contextualise its prominence and understand the underlying market fundamentals fuelling its continued growth. In particular, this panel highlights the breadth of opportunities the sector has to offer outside of digital payments, including digital banks, cryptocurrency, international remittances and peer to peer lending. Finally, this panel explores how FinTech is disrupting established traditional banking and payment practices and how these innovative uses of technology are transforming Africa’s informal sector.

Natalie Kolbe Managing Partner, Norrsken22

Khaled Ben Jilani Senior Partner, AfricInvest

Tidjane Deme General Partner , Partech

Mohamed Okasha Founder & Managing Partner, DisrupTech

Anthony William Catt Founder & Director, Ventures 54 (moderator)

10:50 am - 11:20 am

Network Network Network!!!

11:20 am - 11:35 am

How to scale a business in Africa: 60 seconds with OmniRetail

Deepankar Rustagi Chief Executive Officer, OmniRetail (Omnibiz Africa)

‘Tokunboh Ishmael Managing Director, Alitheia Capital (moderator)

11:35 am - 12:20 pm

Panel 3: Africa to the World – A look at the Global Managers Expanding Africa’s Innovation Ecosystem

African startups are transforming the continent’s economic landscape and creating new market opportunities, and global managers and capital allocators are taking notice. Several multi-billion-dollar VC fund managers from around the world have participated with increasing frequency in late-stage venture rounds in recent years, and these commitments will be inspected over the course of the panel. This panel addresses the market drivers for Africa’s continued attractiveness to international investors; the increasing diversification of actors (by both investor type and location) active in Africa’s VC ecosystem; and prospects for further attracting global managers to Africa’s shores.

Ben Marrel Co-Founder & Chief Executive Officer, Breega

William Bao Bean General Partner, SOSV

Amal Enan Partner, 500 Global

Monica Brand Engel Co-Founder and Managing Partner, Quona Capital

David van Dijk Team Leader, Boost Africa (moderator)

12:20 pm - 12:35 pm

Addressing Utility Management Challenges in Egypt - The Pylon Story

Omar Radi Co-Founder and Chief Technology Officer, Pylon

Abi Mustapha-Maduakor Chief Executive Officer, AVCA (moderator)

12:35 pm - 1:15 pm

Workshop: ESG Risks and Impact Opportunities in Emerging Market VC

ESG and Impact have seen a tremendous rise in the the VC ecosystem. Despite this momentum, ESG standards, reporting frameworks, and available guidance are rarely tailored to the risks and opportunities most relevant to emerging market VC and their underlying portfolio. This leaves VCs often lacking the tools to effectively support their portfolio on critical risks, and can create a mismatch between LP and GP expectations on how best to address, monitor, and report on ESG & Impact. In this workshop we are bringing together GPs and LPs who are active in the region to discuss lessons learned and emerging best practice, to contribute to better ESG integration in the region and to help VCs and startups capitalize on their impact potential.

Jennifer Schöberlein Partner ESG & Impact, Sawari Ventures

1:15 pm - 1:55 pm

Networking Lunch

1:55 pm - 2:00 pm

Afternoon Chair Introduction

1:55 pm - 2:00 pm

Afternoon Chair Introduction

2:00 pm - 2:45 pm

Stream 1: Trailblazing Beyond Fintech

Picking up from Panel 2, this stream looks beyond the giant of Africa’s silicon savannah to explore alternate sectors prime for growth and investment in Africa. Which sectors and verticals are bringing commercial opportunity, and who are the notable investors and innovators trailblazing in these spaces? Will we see opportunities for unicorns outside of FinTech in the near term?

Ory Okolloh Partner, Verod-Kepple Africa Ventures

Hany Al Sonbaty Managing Partner, Sawari Ventures

Kola Aina Founding Partner, Ventures Platform

Maya Horgan Famodu Founder & Managing Director, Ingressive Capital

Folake Elias-Adebowale Partner, Udo Udoma & Belo-Osagie (UUBO) (moderator)

2:00 pm - 2:45 pm

Stream 2: Leveraging Venture Debt to unlock financing for startups in Africa

Venture debt has emerged from the periphery to become a key component of the African investment ecosystem as startups opt to remain private longer and seek creative forms of financing that minimize dilution. This stream takes a look at the players that are actively providing venture debt. the role of venture debt and mezzanine financing as a complement to equity; how and when African investors should deploy this tool; and how to raise awareness of these alternative financing products to entrepreneurs and companies unfamiliar with these investment strategies.

David Kleiterp Senior Investment Officer, Untapped Global

Rana Abdel Latif Senior Principal, Nclude

Mona El Sayed Founding and Managing Partner, Camel Management

Zain Latif Founder , TLG Capital

Bukola Bankole Partner, TNP (moderator)

2:45 pm - 3:30 pm

Stream 3: Adaptation & Mitigation – Climate Tech to Rescue

Africa is home to some of the most innovative ecosystems and resources aimed at building climate resilience. This concentration of climate-related technologies is of no surprise, given the galvanising force of digitalisation and technology developments in reducing costs for renewable energies. This stream examines the role of venture capital in accelerating Africa’s transition to carbon neutrality, and the innovative technology being used to build climate resilience in Africa.

Marcus Watson Partner, KawiSafi Ventures

Matthieu Ducorroy Head of Private Equity Unit, European Investment Bank (EIB)

Sandrine Henton Managing Director, EG Capital

Samuel Salako Partner, Olajide Oyewole | DLA Piper (moderator)

2:45 pm - 3:30 pm

Stream 4: Plugging the Gap from Idea to IPO

Honing on the seed and pre-seed stage, this panel explores the role of angels, accelerators, incubators and fund managers in sourcing startups and accelerating their growth through capital and ancillary support. What is the motivation for taking early-stage risk to support entrepreneurs at their conceptual and infancy phase, and how do investors navigate the risk and rewards of early-stage investing?

Tamim El Zein Partner, Seedstars Africa Ventures

Oyin Solebo Managing Director, ARM Labs Lagos Techstars Accelerator

Magdi Amin Co-Founder & Managing Partner, African Renaissance Partners

Evelyne Dioh Simpa Managing Director, WIC Capital

Patrick Rogers Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Clara (moderator)

3:30 pm - 4:00 pm

Networking Network Network!!!

4:00 pm - 4:45 pm

Stream 5: From Cape to Cairo: Bridging Pan African Opportunities

This stream zeroes in on the growth capacity of start-ups in Africa and the avenues available for market expansion, either by direct, organic business expansion in new markets, or via the use of mergers and acquisitions. The benefits and bottlenecks of each approach will be evaluated, giving a detailed picture into the practicalities of venture scaling on the continent from both the entrepreneurial and investor perspective. The panel will also explore the role of fund managers and other investors in positioning their portfolio for Africa expansion.

Nick Allen Managing Partner, Savant

Fope Adelowo Principal, Investment Team, Helios Investment Partners

Ashley Lewis Co-Head, DPI Innovation Fund, Development Partners International (DPI)

Omar Khashaba General Partner, Algebra Ventures

Martijn Woudstra Program Manager, FMO Ventures (moderator)

4:00 pm - 4:45 pm

Stream 6: A Call for Governance: Principles for Corporate Responsibility

Although the ESG framework takes the holistic view that sustainability extends beyond just environmental issues, governance considerations are often overshadowed by the environmental and social. Headlines detailing corporate governance deficiencies wracked Africa’s startup ecosystem in 2022, illustrating the real-world implications of this long-term marginalisation of governance criteria and bringing to the fore the need for appropriate governance practices. This stream adopts an exploratory lens to determine practical principles that both entrepreneurs and investors should be aware of to ensure good corporate governance. How can venture capital investors add governance to their value creation strategies at the portfolio level, and how should these be tailored to suit the infancy and size of startups receiving funding in Africa?

Tarek Shash Deputy Executive Director, Micro, Small & Medium Enterprise Development Agency (MSMEDA)

Margaret O’Connor Chairperson, Launch Africa Ventures

Raj Kulasingam Senior Counsel, Dentons (moderator)

4:45 pm - 5:15 pm

Panel 4: Straight From The Source: LP Perspectives on Venture Capital in Africa

This panel discussion explores the views, preferences and expectations of both commercial and development-focused capital allocators on the future of venture capital in Africa.

Najada Kumbili Head, Investments, Visa Foundation

Simone Baur Director, Impact Investments, Allianz Global Investors

Sherine Shohdy Head of Office and Coverage Director, Egypt, British International Investment

5:15 pm - 5:20 pm

Closing Remarks

Apply for a complimentary qualified FREE LP* pass

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*The AVCA Conference is complimentary for qualified Limited Partners (LPs), classified as non-retail investors in private equity funds, limited to 3 complimentary passes per organisation. This includes full-time employees of development finance institutions (DFIs), endowments, single-family offices, insurance companies, public and private pension funds, and sovereign wealth funds.