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Angel Investors Plan Rare SPAC Targeting African Startups

  • Agarwal and Kulasingam want to emulate Swvl’s merger with SPAC
  • The duo have invested in more than 50 African startups
Countries in Africa have a tech-savvy youth population but the continent often lacks financial infrastructure.

Countries in Africa have a tech-savvy youth population but the continent often lacks financial infrastructure.

Photographer: Waldo Swiegers
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A pair of early-stage investors, who have made fivefold returns funding African startups since 2017, said they plan to list a blank-check company targeting technology companies from the continent. 

Investment banker Vishal Agarwal and corporate lawyer Raj Kulasingam hope to emulate the success they saw as investors in Swvl Inc., an Egyptian bus-hailing service now based in Dubai, that’s merging with Queen’s Gambit Growth Capital, a blank-check company. An Africa-focused SPAC would fill a gap to provide funds for a startup needing capital to rapidly expand, according to Agarwal.