VENCO, a technology company that provides solutions to enhance living experiences in residential and commercial communities in Africa, has secured $670,000 in an oversubscribed seed funding round.
The company says the fund will be deployed to scale its all-in-one technology platform that manages collections, service charge management, utility sales, visitor access and other services associated with multi-unit property developments in Africa.
Beginning with Nigeria and Kenya, the new financing will help VENCO develop its credit delivery infrastructure for rent and household expenses, as well as its expansion to other cities and countries on the continent.
The investors: The pre-seed funding round was led by Zrosk Investment Management, with participation from other strategic investors including Voltron Capital, Decimal Point Ventures, Fast Forward Fund, Tayo Oviosu (CEO of Paga), Odun Eweniyi (COO of Piggyvest) , Oo Nwoye, Desigan Chinniah, Dakar Network Angels and Viktoria Business Angel Network.
Opportunities for VENCO: With increasing urbanization in Africa, multi-property developments have become the preferred mode of offering residential and commercial real estate.
- According to VENCO, of the 2.5 million households in Nigeria earning more than $1,000 a month, 80% live in multi-property communities. 25% of your income is spent on rent and 50% is spent on other household needs, including consumables, utilities, internet data, cable TV, and other services. This market for household spending represents a $22.5 billion opportunity in Nigeria and a $100 billion opportunity across Africa.
- Co-founded by Chude Osiegbu (CEO), Reagan Mbitiru (CTO) and Uzochukwu Alor (COO), VENCO automates the collection and reconciliation of all community fees and payments, resulting in better receipts and better margins for owners.
- For residents, the self-service tools provided by VENCO make processes such as visitor control, problem and emergency management, as well as the sale of public services more seamless. With residents able to create an economic profile based on their financial transactions on the VENCO platform, they can now access a range of integrated financial services, including insurance, credit facilitation for rent, service charges and household expenses along with many others. services.
Recorded audio: VENCO says that it has registered a growth of more than 200% in the last 9 months and is currently in 6 cities and more than 12,000 property units in Nigeria and Kenya. Since January 2022, it has processed over $10 million in transaction value through its platform. The company is also partnering with e-commerce platforms to enable easier access for merchants in and around the community, energy companies to ensure reliable energy metering and collection, and other service providers to improve the overall experience on these communities.
Commenting on the company’s solutions, Chude Osiegbu, CEO and Co-Founder of VENCO, said:
- “The manual nature of many processes associated with life in residential and commercial communities in Africa presents many problems that we believe technology can solve. Beyond this, we also want to harness technology to deliver new services and experiences that will transform the way people live in Africa’s growing cities and create better value for everyone across the board. Our goal is to deliver technology solutions that enhance life experiences across the continent, and we are excited to have raised these funds to support that mission.”