At Moonshot 2025, TechCabal’s premier conference, investors delved into numerous topics, but three key insights emerged prominently: first, the necessity for startups to maintain financial discipline before scaling; second, the strategic shift towards engineered exits; and third, the growing trend of African venture capitalists seeking funding from Asian markets as many prepare for fundraising rounds in early 2026.
Olu Oyinsan, managing partner at Oui Capital, emphasized that engineered exits revolve around supporting companies with a transparent route to profitability. Having successfully returned his initial fund, Oyinsan advocates for startups to adopt a “fixed cost recovery mindset,” ensuring that over time, their revenue consistently surpasses operational fixed expenses.
Several investors highlighted the ecosystem’s increasing maturity, noting that founders now commonly begin their pitch decks with a “path to profitability” section. This shift reflects a broader trend where venture funds are more actively involved in instilling operational rigor. “The game has changed-everyone’s focused on the numbers now,” remarked a fund manager who preferred anonymity. “You need precise financials, a clear strategy, and a well-structured cap table.”
Samuel Frank, an associate at Ghana-based Sahara Impact Ventures, a climate tech fund, reinforced this sentiment by pointing out the reduced emphasis on rapid cash burn and a stronger focus on validating sustainable business models before pursuing aggressive growth.
With limited partner interest waning in traditional hubs like Europe and the US-regions typically favored by African VC managers-there’s a noticeable pivot towards Asia, where investors tend to be more patient and aligned with long-term value creation, according to two investors who spoke with TechCabal during Moonshot.
In a notable development, Japan’s development finance institution, the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), became a limited partner in Novastar Ventures’ $200 million fund in late August. That same month, Uncovered Fund, a Japanese early-stage investor in Africa, teamed up with Tokyo’s Monex Group to launch a $20 million fund targeting startups across Africa and the Middle East.
This shift in LP focus could influence the profile of startups receiving backing and the benchmarks used to evaluate them. If these partnerships lead to successful fund closures, early-stage ventures-particularly pre-seed and seed rounds-may experience increased funding opportunities, albeit with more modest check sizes.
Freda Isingoma, senior fund manager at Octopus Investments, stressed the importance of expanding local capital availability, especially for Series B and C rounds, to enhance exit prospects for African startups. She pointed to the UK’s Alternative Investment Market (AIM) as an instructive example: a secondary stock exchange designed to help smaller, high-growth companies access public markets with fewer regulatory hurdles.
Although listing on the London Stock Exchange (LSE)-which currently hosts over 110 African companies with a combined market value exceeding $110 billion-may be challenging for many startups, AIM offers a more accessible alternative. It enables mid-sized firms to tap into public capital without the extensive costs and complexities associated with the main exchange.
Isingoma proposed that African startups explore dual listing strategies: raising equity on international platforms to attract liquidity and institutional investors while maintaining their core operations and growth focus within their home markets.
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