In 2019, UK-based venture capital firm Playfair Capital announced the closure of its second fund, raising $32 million (approximately Sh3.2 billion) to invest in technology start-ups across Africa and other emerging markets.
The firm plans to allocate the funds over a three- to five-year period, though it has not specified the exact portion directed toward Kenya or the particular sectors receiving priority. Federico Pirzio-Biroli, founding partner of Playfair Capital and an early investor in Kenya’s Mobius Motors, emphasized the firm’s focus on deep technology, software-as-a-service (SaaS), and marketplace platforms.
"With the new fund we will seek out start-ups that use deep tech and data to create a defensible proposition that has longevity," Pirzio-Biroli stated. "We are hugely excited about opportunities in the deep tech, SaaS and marketplace segments where we have already demonstrated success."
Pirzio-Biroli, who relocated to Nairobi in 2019 to oversee African expansion, maintains his role as chairman of Playfair Capital. His firm has invested in over 20 companies across the UK, Europe, the US, and Africa, including Mobius Motors, which he described as a "fantastic example of 'Africa 2.0'"—businesses delivering critical products and driving regional industrialization.
Playfair Capital also holds a stake in Andela, a Nairobi- and Lagos-based tech training company that secured $24 million in funding from Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla Chan. Meanwhile, Mobius Motors recently unveiled plans to scale production with its new Mobius II model.
