• Yango Ventures invests in Kenyan SME lender Zanifu
• Fintech has issued $60M+ loans to 15,000 small businesses
• Funding to accelerate African expansion, address $5.2T SME gap

Yango Ventures, a $20 million venture capital fund belonging to international tech group Yango, announced on Thursday, September 18, 2025, that it has invested in Zanifu, a Kenyan fintech specializing in financing small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

"We’re excited to announce our new portfolio company," Yango Ventures stated without disclosing the investment amount. "We’re proud to support the team (co-founders Steve Biko & Sebastian Mithika) as they scale across Africa and beyond!"

The investment will provide the Kenyan fintech with financial resources and strategic and operational support to accelerate its growth, particularly in Africa.

This partnership highlights the confidence in Zanifu's business model and its ability to meet the financing needs of African SMEs. Since launching its lending operations in 2018, the startup has shown notable performance, having disbursed over $60 million in loans to more than 15,000 SMEs, according to Yango Ventures. The company has also been profitable for two consecutive months, demonstrating the viability of its model in a market where small business financing remains a major challenge.

Zanifu offers a digital lending platform that gives small retailers, who are often excluded from the traditional banking system, quick access to working capital loans of up to $2,000, which can be repaid through business revenue. This provides a crucial boost in an environment where a lack of venture capital continues to hinder the development of innovative young companies in emerging markets.

The International Finance Corporation (IFC) estimates that 65 million businesses—40% of all formal micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises in developing countries—have an unmet financing need of $5.2 trillion each year.

Yango Ventures was launched in 2025 and primarily targets startups in three key sectors: e-commerce, B2B SaaS (business software), and fintech. This initiative is part of the broader vision of the Yango Group, which aims to empower entrepreneurs. Yango is already well-established in Cameroon, Côte d'Ivoire, and Dubai through its ride-hailing services.

SG