Baobab Network

The Baobab Network is a Nairobi-based accelerator and early-stage venture fund focused on backing African technology entrepreneurs, founded in 2015 and 2016 by Tom Fairburn and Toby Hanington, who met at the University of Bath and established the firm to address the acute shortage of patient early-stage capital and hands-on support for African founders. Note: the original directory lists this firm's country as UK, which appears to be an error; The Baobab Network is headquartered in Nairobi, Kenya. The firm invests $100,000 in each company it accepts, pairing this capital with a twelve-week intensive accelerator programme that provides founders with mentorship, operational support, and access to a global network of investors and corporate partners through the firm's proprietary platform, Baobab OS. The Baobab Network accepts applications on a rolling basis throughout the year and has built a reputation as one of Africa's most active and credible pre-seed investors, having backed more than 65 companies across 16 African countries since its founding. The firm is sector-agnostic in principle, though its portfolio concentrates in technology sectors addressing major gaps in African infrastructure: financial services, logistics, education, health, and legal and compliance services. Portfolio companies that have gone on to raise follow-on capital include Terminal Africa, a full-stack logistics platform; Hadi, an edtech company; Lemonade Payments, a fintech platform; Sidebrief, a company simplifying cross-border business incorporation in Africa; and PesaKit, a fintech infrastructure provider. Baobab has been referenced by Augmentum Fintech as a recent portfolio investment, expanding its investor base beyond the traditional Africa-focused VC community.