The second close attracted backing from the International Finance Corporation (IFC), FASA, Shell Foundation, Trafigura Foundation, Speedinvest, Blink Impact, and the Women Entrepreneurs Finance Initiative (We-Fi), joining early backers FSD Africa and the Cisco Foundation. We-Fi joined specifically to help strengthen the fund's pipeline of women-led climate startups.
A Bet on Climate Adaptation as a Core Investment Theme
Led by partners Maelis Carraro, Maxime Bayen, Olúwatóyìn Emmanuel-Olubake, and Amolo Ng'weno, Catalyst Fund invests from pre-seed to Series A in startups developing climate resilience solutions across agriculture, food systems, energy, water, mobility, and climate fintech.
"Climate adaptation is one of the defining investment themes of the next decade, especially in Africa, where the need is immediate, and the entrepreneurial talent is extraordinary. This second close allows us to double down on our mission: backing ambitious founders building practical, scalable solutions for a climate-changed world, and supporting them not just with capital, but with the hands-on venture-building support they need to grow." — Maelis Carraro, Founder & General Partner, Catalyst Fund.
The second close follows a $9 million first close in the third quarter of 2023 . The firm expects to reach final close before the end of the year.
Portfolio Demonstrating Real-World Impact
Catalyst Fund has already invested in 28 startups across 10 African markets, with plans to build a portfolio of approximately 40 companies. Its largest markets today are Nigeria, Kenya, Egypt, and Tanzania, where climate technology ecosystems have developed most rapidly.
Notable portfolio companies include:
Keep It Cool (Kenya) — A 2024 Earthshot Prize winner building solar-powered cold-chain infrastructure for fisherfolk and poultry farmers, addressing post-harvest food losses.
MazaoHub (Tanzania) — An agritech startup combining AI-powered soil intelligence with on-the-ground agronomy support and digital market access to help smallholder farmers improve yields and livelihoods.
Bekia (Egypt) — A tech-enabled circular economy platform connecting waste producers—households and businesses—with collectors, logistics partners and trusted recyclers to turn recycling into a profitable, closed-loop system.
A Different Kind of Venture Model
What distinguishes Catalyst Fund from conventional early-stage investors is its embedded venture-building approach. The firm works alongside founders from the start, pairing equity investment with operational support from BFA Global.
"This second close allows us to double down on our mission: backing ambitious founders building practical, scalable solutions for a climate-changed world and supporting them not just with capital, but with the hands-on venture-building support they need to grow." — Maelis Carraro
The model is designed to fill the gap that kills many early-stage African startups: they receive funding but lack the practical infrastructure to use it effectively. The firm typically writes $200,000 pre-seed cheques before reserving additional capital for follow-on rounds. It has already made nine follow-on investments into its strongest-performing portfolio companies.
FASA contributed $5 million in junior equity to de-risk the fund and unlock additional capital from co-investors and committed to providing technical assistance to its most promising agriculture-focused startups.
A Sector on the Rise
Climate tech funding in Africa fell to $754 million in 2024 before rebounding to $1.1 billion by November 2025, suggesting growing investor confidence in the sector.
"Climate is no longer a niche investment theme—it's reshaping virtually every sector of the economy, from agriculture and logistics to healthcare and financial services. Investors increasingly recognize that businesses helping people and industries adapt to climate change are addressing large, growing markets with strong commercial fundamentals." — Maxime Bayen, General Partner, Catalyst Fund.
Africa contributes less than 4% of global carbon emissions but faces some of the most severe climate consequences: disrupted rainfall, flooding, droughts and food insecurity threatening hundreds of millions of people. In 2025 alone, Catalyst Fund's portfolio reached over 560,000 individuals with climate-adaptive products and services, mitigated nearly 28,000 tonnes of CO₂ emissions, created 1,000+ green jobs and collected over 24,000 tonnes of waste.
What This Means for African Climate Tech
The successful second close of Catalyst Fund signals a growing recognition among institutional investors that climate resilience in Africa is not just an impact story, but a significant commercial opportunity. The backing from institutions such as IFC, Shell Foundation, and Trafigura Foundation also shows growing interest in using blended capital to draw more private money into climate adaptation.
As climate shocks intensify, demand is rising for affordable, scalable solutions that help communities and economies adapt. Catalyst Fund believes the next generation of category-defining African startups will be built in that gap—and that backing them early can deliver outsized impact and strong returns for investors.
With reporting from Wamda, Disrupt Africa, ImpactAlpha, ESG Today, FSD Africa, TechCabal, Ecofin Agency, and allAfrica.com.
