Tracing Roots: The Role of LPs in African Venture Ecosystem(s)
In this episode, Babacar Seck and I discuss how he started his career in venture capital and private equity, Proparco’s distinct characteristics as an LP and how it evaluates funds, how DFIs’ ESG standards benefit African VC, common mistakes that GPs make while fundraising and how the process works against them, why Africans, women, and first-time GPs struggle to raise money; what drives fund underperformance generally and how LPs can help; and what micro and macro factors will drive future adjustments in the African VC space.
Welcome to Track 11 of The Trajectory Africa, a podcast series exploring the trajectory, or pathway, of venture capital and startup formation in Africa. This episode’s guest artist is Babacar Seck. Babacar is an investor passionate about projects that drive inclusive development, from education to healthcare and financial services. As a senior investment professional at Proparco, he focuses on designing and deploying a €200M venture capital program to fund and support African entrepreneurs while also managing a global investment portfolio of banks, insurance, and fintech.
Prior to Proparco, Babacar led key areas of strategy and development for AXA, a €1 trillion insurance firm, working under the Chairman and CEO. In his spare time, Babacar supports Africa-focused initiatives, as the Chair of the Sciences Po Alumni Africa Division, and as a member of Africultures and the Association of African Actuaries, respectively.
Prior to Proparco, Babacar led key areas of strategy and development for AXA, a €1 trillion insurance firm, working under the Chairman and CEO. In his spare time, Babacar supports Africa-focused initiatives, as the Chair of the Sciences Po Alumni Africa Division, and as a member of Africultures and the Association of African Actuaries, respectively.
In this episode, the final one of the series, we discuss:
- How Babacar started his career in venture capital and private equity
- Proparco’s distinct characteristics as an LP and how it evaluates GPs
- How DFIs’ ESG standards have benefitted African VC
- Common mistakes that GPs make while fundraising and how the process works against them
- Why African, women, and first-time GPs struggle to raise money
- What drives (African) fund underperformance and how LPs can help
- What micro and macro factors will drive adjustments in the African VC space
Babacar’s Recommendations & Featured Resources:
- Proparco
https://www.proparco.fr/en - Spiritual. Burna Boy
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Coj0yQaItes - Chasing Outliers: Why Context Matters for Early Stage Investing in Africa (report)
https://kinyungu.com/chasing-outliers/
DJ Saphir’s Spotify Playlist:
