Ailura Tech Fund (the “Fund”), is a sub fund of Ailura Fund VCC. It seeks to take advantage of investment opportunities in technology companies, predominantly in Africa, where the Fund’s founders have extensive investment experience and a proven track record. The Fund intends to largely focus on growth stage companies (i.e. Series B plus) investment opportunities, where the start-up risks and (perceived) geographic/country risks have been pared down. Where possible, the Fund will invest through convertible and/or preferred equity instruments to mitigate against excessive deal pricing and potential loss of capital thereby avoiding getting caught up in irrational valuation practices in certain geographies and industries.
Adriaan Van Wyk
Adriaan is a serial tech entrepreneur having founded a number of successful tech companies, including k2, a South African software startup that raised over $170m from prominent US VC firms. Adriaan is currently the Founder and CEO of JigX, a SAAS start-up headquartered in the US with a globally distributed team that spans 4 continents.
Brett Childs
Adriaan is a serial tech entrepreneur having founded a number of successful tech companies, including k2, a South African software startup that raised over $170m from prominent US VC firms. Adriaan is currently the Founder and CEO of JigX, a SAAS start-up headquartered in the US with a globally distributed team that spans 4 continents.
James Henry
James co-founded a South African Private Equity company and successfully invested in ed-tech, fin-tech, retail and pharmaceuticals. He was a founding seed investor of The Invigilator and assisted in the company’s rapid growth to more than 1 million users in 18 months of operation and the partial sale of the company at a 100x plus return for early investors.
Rudolf Pretorius
Rudolf is an experienced African Entrepreneur and investor. He was involved in the establishment and subsequent growth of Outsurance as an active non-executive director until 2021. He raised two private equity funds that delivered top quartile returns for their vintage in South Africa that successfully invested in Teraco, a South African start-up that recently changed hands at a $3.5bn valuation. Rudolf is the co-founder and a director of Adansonia Holdings, a non-exec director of Bank Zero and serves as CIO and Chairman of APEO.
Brendon has over 26 years of developed and emerging market experience. He spent his early years in investment banking in London, with firms including JP Morgan Chase, Deutsche Bank, and Citibank. In 2006, Brendon was appointed Managing Director, and later became a Shareholder, of Inter-Ocean Management Limited, a Mauritian Offshore Management Company licensed by the Financial Services Commission. Inter-Ocean Management Limited was successfully sold to the Maitland Group, and rebranded Maitland (Mauritius) Limited in 2012. In 2014, Brendon co-founded the Adansonia Group, which continues to focus on providing value added solutions to a range of international investment funds, corporates, family offices and high net worth individuals from the United Kingdom, Africa, Middle East, Australia, United States and Southeast Asia. In 2021, Brendon relocated to Singapore to set up operations for the Adansonia Group. He currently serves on inter alia the boards of Denham Capital’s African mining fund, Alphamin Resources Corporation (a DRC based tin producer listed on Toronto Stock Exchange) and Adansonia Fund Manager Private Limited, a Singaporean Registered Fund Management Company.