British International Investment backs Egyptian VC firms

At a business reception launching its new name in Egypt, British International Investment (BII), the UK’s development finance institution (DFI) and impact investor, announced its plan to invest $100 million in local start-ups over its current strategy period.

As part of BII’s ambition to bolster Egyptian venture capital (VC), the DFI announced new commitments to Algebra Ventures and Endure Capital, two local VC firms. The capital will support Algebra Ventures’ second fund following the success of Fund I, which included market-leading companies such as Khazna, Mozare3 and Shift EV. BII also anchors Endure Capital’s most recent fund Endure21, which has backed high-impact companies such as Brimore, Pylon and Cassbana.

The DFI has also invested in MaxAB, a prominent B2B e-commerce platform in North Africa. The funding will support the creation of 4,000 jobs and facilitate MaxAB’s expansion across Egypt and Morocco, enabling the company to reach an additional 73,000 micro-retailers across the region. In addition, the investment will help address supply-chain inefficiencies by implementing financial solutions that increase access to finance and facilitate payments for small-scale and low-income retailers.

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