Enza Capital has reached the first close of its AI Africa Fund with about $21 million. That is 35% of the $60 million it wants to raise.
The pan-African venture firm expects more commitments before the end of 2026 and plans a final close in 2027. The fund has a hard cap of $80 million, which is the most it can take. First investments are planned for 2027. The fund will back AI-native and AI-enabled companies across Africa, writing cheques from $250,000 to $5 million at stages from pre-Seed to Series B.
Here is the fund at a glance.
| Detail | What was announced |
|---|---|
| First close. | About $21 million. |
| Target. | $60 million. |
| Hard cap. | $80 million. |
| More money. | Expected before the end of 2026. |
| Final close. | Planned for 2027. |
| First investments. | Planned for 2027. |
A first close means the firm has locked in an initial group of investors and can start work, while it keeps raising. By our sums, Enza still needs about $39 million to hit its target and about $59 million to reach the cap. The $21 million is about 26% of the cap. The news also means the dedicated fund will not write its first cheque until 2027.
That does not mean Enza is waiting. The firm says it has backed 49 technology companies in 10 African countries over seven years. Nearly a dozen are AI-first businesses, and many more use AI in their products. Its first full exit came in 2025. Netcare took a controlling stake in Quro Medical, an AI health company that offers hospital-level care at home. Enza also runs Enza Growth Capital, a long-term vehicle with no fixed end date that can put up to $20 million into one company.
Who is behind it? Enza was founded in 2019 by Mike Mompi, Sir John Lazar and David Cohen. The AI Africa Fund is its third. Its usual first cheque is $250,000 to $5 million, with a typical range of $500,000 to $2 million. It looks at financial services, healthcare, enterprise technology, education, farming, climate and new infrastructure.
Now the thesis. Mompi says AI is changing the cost of solving problems. “Across Africa, where infrastructure gaps, fragmented markets and the cost of delivering services have historically held businesses back, we believe this creates an extraordinary opportunity,” he said. Enza also draws a line. It is not aiming at companies that build frontier models. Instead it wants startups that adapt AI to African languages, data and conditions. It looks for firms with their own data, a loyal customer base or software woven into daily work. It also wants strong margins. “Net profit margin and free cash flow matter even more than gross margin,” Mompi said.
Why does the timing matter? Raising a fund in Africa is not easy. A LaunchBase Africa review of early 2026 dealmaking named Enza among the repeat managers with at least three deals between January and April. Ventures Platform, for example, closed its second fund at $84 million in August. LaunchBase reports that institutional money goes mainly to managers who show disciplined investing.
Why it matters: AI is now a theme for African investors, but few funds are built only for it. Enza’s fund is one of the first with a clear line: back AI that fits African languages, data and costs, and skip the race to build giant models. If it works, it could channel money to startups that serve banks, hospitals, telecoms and farms. The test is whether Enza can raise the rest and show that its AI companies make real profits, which is the measure Mompi himself names.
What to watch next: who the investors in the first close are, since the announcement does not name them. Watch whether Enza hits $60 million before the end of 2026, or needs the 2027 close. Watch for the first cheques from the fund and which sectors get them. Watch how the firm’s AI companies perform on margins and cash flow. Watch whether more African funds launch AI-only vehicles. And watch how the exits from this wave of investment compare with Enza’s first one, Quro Medical.
Sources: African-Startups on Enza Capital’s AI Africa Fund first close; Empower Africa on Enza’s dedicated AI fund; Dealroom on Enza’s AI fund launch; LaunchBase Africa on new VC funds and early 2026 dealmaking; LaunchBase Africa on Ventures Platform’s $84 million second fund.
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