Africa-Focused Investors Lead $40 Million Raise for MarketForce

(Bloomberg) -- A Kenyan technology company, MarketForce, raised $40 million in a funding round led by V8 Capital Partners of Nigeria to expand its digital retail-distribution business.

The round of equity and debt financing was concluded with participation from other investors, including Ten13 VC and SOSV Select Fund, according to the company which operates a digital retail-distribution platform. Ken Njoroge, co-founder of Africa payments firm Cellulant, invested in MarketForce too and joins the company’s board as its chairman.

Investors have shown more interest in African technology enterprises since last year when startups on the continent raised a record $5 billion. While most of the funding by far comes from offshore sources, Africa-focused companies like V8 Capital Partners are increasing their investments in the region.  

MarketForce, founded in 2018, operates a business-to-business commerce platform dubbed RejaReja, Swahili for retail. Merchants can use it to source, order and pay for inventory, access finance and collect payments.

“Our goal is to be the ultimate partner for informal merchants, empowering them to maximize their profits and grow in a digital age,” co-founder and chief executive officer of MarketForce, Tesh Mbaabu, said in an interview.

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The new funds will be used to expand into fresh markets and products. After entering Nigeria in November, MarketForce is now moving into Uganda, Tanzania and Rwanda as well as two other markets in West Africa. 

“We are targeting to serve over 1 million active merchants on our platform in Sub-Saharan Africa by 2025,” Mbaabu said. The startup plans to double its workforce before the end of the year from the current 400, he said.

“We are proud to partner and build the future of retail in Africa by helping to optimize supply chains and catalyze the digitization of the African retail ecosystem,” said Tobi Oke, general partner at V8 Capital. The business “holds a lot of untapped potential to improve incomes and enable millions of African merchants to grow.”

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