Ventures Platform has raised an oversubscribed $83 million second fund as the Pan-African venture firm expands beyond its home market of Nigeria with a strategy shaped by a tougher, more selective venture market. The firm plans to back early-stage founders across a range of sectors, including fintech, healthcare, SaaS, and other areas where technology can address essential needs and build large, enduring businesses. Of course, AI is part of that thesis.

Ventures Platform, which is headquartered in Nigeria, previously raised a $46 million Fund I in 2022 with a similar, albeit more limited scope. Now, Ventures Platform is back with a larger fund and wider geographic mandate. The firm is expanding its focus beyond Nigeria and has already written checks from Fund II to five companies based in Kenya, South Africa, and Egypt.

Check sizes will be up to $3 million, and the firm hopes to deploy the capital over the next three to four years. The fundraising process took about a year and a half, with Aina describing the environment as more selective than it was when Ventures Platform raised Fund I. This year, African startups have raised around $930 million across more than 200 deals.

Last year, startups on the continent raised $1.16 billion across 447 deals.