TLcom, the Africa-focused venture capital firm, has appointed Eloho Omame as a Partner, bolstering its capabilities as it ramps up deployment of TIDE Africa Fund II, its new $150mn pan-African tech fund.
As well as focusing on the firm’s traditional remit of seed to Series B investments in high-growth, tech-enabled startups, Eloho will bring more senior capacity to TLcom’s high-touch approach with entrepreneurs and support deal flow generation at the pre-seed stage, as TLcom doubles down on its commitment to Africa’s thriving tech opportunity.
There will be even greater emphasis on attracting more female-led companies into TLcom’s portfolio.
Speaking on TLcom’s expansion and the appointment of Eloho, founder and managing partner at TLcom, Maurizio Caio, said: “with the launch of our new fund, we are more committed than ever to Africa. As we partner with more entrepreneurs, it is vital that we are able to maintain our existing level of high-quality, on-the-ground strategic support to unlock the full value-generation potential of these companies.
“With our portfolio companies, and our investors, we are building for the long term and fully focused on the upside of the tech sector.
“We are especially proud to strengthen our team with a Partner of Eloho’s calibre, a seasoned investor who mirrors our founder-first ethos, and will play a critical role in enabling us to deepen our commitment to the founder journey in Africa through her early-stage experience.
“Equally, her expertise will prove invaluable in strengthening our existing support for female entrepreneurs. We look forward to working with Eloho to drive the next phase of our mission to transform Africa’s key verticals through tech-enabled solutions.”
Following the first close of its new $150mn fund announced in January 2022, TLcom has gained even greater momentum, with a number of additional commitments to its fund and significant new deal flow for its growing portfolio.
The firm recently led a $10mn Series A round in Seamless HR, a Nigerian platform providing payroll and HR software-as-a-service (SaaS) solutions to companies in Africa and a seed round in Pastel, a Nigerian fintech company.
Eloho Omame, Partner at TLcom, added that, “it’s an honour to join one of the most prestigious investors in African tech. TLcom has seen the benefits of an early-stage approach through the success of both new and repeat founders in TIDE Africa Fund I. As we deploy capital from TIDE Africa Fund II, it’s crucial that we continue to win the race to find the continent’s best entrepreneurs and support their companies to scale.”
With offices in Kenya, Nigeria and the UK, TLcom invests across all stages of the venture capital cycle and boasts one of the leading portfolios in African tech featuring 13 startups, namely; Andela, Ajua, Autochek, Ilara Health, Kobo360, Okra, Pula, Seamless HR, Pastel, Shara, Terragon Group, Twiga Foods and uLesson.
