Village Capital has announced a $450,000 investment in two Nigerian startups through its Africa Ecosystem Catalysts Facility. The deployment marks the facility's entry into Nigeria after it backed two Ghanaian companies earlier in the year. Trade Lenda and AirSmat are the beneficiaries, with the capital intended to strengthen economic mobility and climate resilience.
Nigeria Expansion Details
Trade Lenda operates a digital financial services platform tailored to small and medium-sized businesses. It provides business loans, embedded finance, and Sharia-compliant financing products to underserved entrepreneurs and farmers. According to the company, more than 260,000 SMEs and farmers across five of Nigeria's six geopolitical zones have been supported, with women representing 66 percent of its customer base.
AirSmat is a climate technology company that converts agricultural waste into biochar-based fertiliser. Its approach improves soil health while removing carbon and creates additional income opportunities for farmers through carbon markets. The startup will use the new funding to complete and commission a commercial factory and expand production capacity in Nigeria.
Facility Structure and Objectives
Village Capital launched the $4 million Africa Ecosystem Catalysts Facility in July 2025 with support from the Dutch Entrepreneurial Development Bank and the Netherlands Enterprise Agency. It targets early-stage companies working on economic mobility and climate resilience across African markets. The facility uses local ecosystem organisations to identify startups that traditional investors may overlook.
The vehicle had already invested $200,000 in Rivia Clinics and $150,000 in VDL Fulfilment in Ghana. With the Nigerian commitments, the portfolio now includes seven startups across Ghana and Nigeria. Additional investments are planned in Nigeria and Tanzania later this year as the facility continues its regional expansion.
Addressing a Funding Gap
The Nigerian investments come at a difficult moment for early-stage startups in Africa. In the first half of 2026, African startups raised only $9 million in early-stage funding compared with $25 million during the same period a year earlier. The facility's model is designed to address this gap by working with local partners who can structure capital around founders' realities.
Africa Fintech Foundry, a local ecosystem partner, helped source the two Nigerian investments. The organisation works with Village Capital to identify promising startups and provide market insight during the investment process. This approach relies on relationships that local Entrepreneur Support Organisations have already built with founders across the country and beyond.
Founder Perspectives
Adeshina Adewumi, co-founder and CEO of Trade Lenda, said the capital enabled the company to accelerate growth and attract more competitive funding. The investment also helped Trade Lenda secure an additional $2 million in local debt facilities at lower rates. That has allowed the company to expand lending while reducing its overall cost of capital.
Soji Sanyaolu, founder and CEO of AirSmat, described access to capital structured around the realities of building a climate-tech company as transformative. The funding supports AirSmat's commercial production and positions it to scale its biochar operations across the region. It also strengthens the startup's ability to generate value for farmers through soil improvement and carbon market participation.
Village Capital's Nigeria entry demonstrates the growing relevance of locally informed investment models in Africa's venture ecosystem. By combining flexible capital with the knowledge of local ecosystem partners, the facility is reaching startups that conventional investors might miss. The new commitments to Trade Lenda and AirSmat are expected to strengthen economic resilience and climate adaptation in Nigeria.