For years, the narrative surrounding Kenya’s startup ecosystem has been consistent: we have the talent, we have the “Silicon Savannah” branding, but we have a massive gap in early-stage funding. While venture capital firms (often foreign-led) handle the Series A rounds and above, the “pre-seed” and “seed” stages – where risky ideas become viable businesses – are often starved of local capital.
We have seen countless workshops designed to teach wealthy Kenyans how to be angel investors. Yet, attendance rarely translates into cheques. The ecosystem suffers from what one might call “panel fatigue”—lots of discussion about investing, very little actual deployment of capital.
A new initiative launched this January, Startup 360 Connect (#S360Connect), is attempting to brute-force a solution to this inertia.
A partnership between the UK–Kenya Tech Hub, Viktoria Ventures, Anza Village, and POV, the initiative is pivoting from “investor awareness” to what they are calling “investor activation.” The headline feature? It’s no longer enough to just sit in a class. To graduate from their new Angel Leads Programme, participants must commit USD 1,000 (approx. KES 130,000) towards a live, syndicated deal.
The Shift: From Theory to Syndicates
“We have spent years building the foundations of angel investing in Africa,” says Stephen Gugu, CEO of Viktoria Ventures. “It is about moving beyond awareness into action.”
This is a critical distinction. Kenya has a robust culture of Chamas (investment groups), which control billions in KES, but that capital is historically locked in low-risk, tangible assets like land and real estate. Convincing a Chama to put money into a high-risk software startup requires more than a PowerPoint presentation; it requires a structural change in how they view risk.
The Startup 360 Connect program, running from February to June 2026, tries to bridge this by grouping individual investors into syndicates. Instead of one person risking USD 10,000 on a single startup, ten people can risk USD 1,000 each. It lowers the barrier to entry and, theoretically, democratises who gets to call themselves an “angel investor.”
This model has teeth. The program builds on the previous “Angel Leads Program,” which birthed the Moneva Syndicate – a group that successfully executed a deal with Afyalishe Wellness. The proof of concept is there; now they are trying to scale it.
The Three-Pillar Approach
The initiative isn’t just throwing money at random startups. It is structured around three distinct pillars, attempting to fix the “pipeline problem” (investors saying there are no good startups) and the “capital problem” (startups saying there are no investors).
1. The Capital: Viktoria Ventures
This is the core engine. Viktoria Ventures runs the training, but the “final exam” is the investment itself.
- The Commitment: Participants undergo structured training on due diligence, legal structuring, and valuation.
- The Output: At the end of the six months, the cohort collectively selects high-potential startups. The USD 1,000 commitment from each participant is pooled and deployed.
- Why it matters: It forces participants to stop thinking like students and start thinking like asset allocators.
2. The Product: Anza Village
You cannot invest if the product is broken. Anza Village is running the “Startup School Kenya” pillar. This is a founder-readiness track designed to take university innovation clubs and early-stage founders and beat their business models into shape.
- The Goal: To create a “consistent pipeline” of startups that are actually investment-ready.
- The Method: They focus on governance, financial literacy, and product-market validation.
- The Connection: Graduates from Anza’s school are fed directly into the Viktoria Ventures Angel Leads program for potential funding. It is a closed loop.
3. The Scale: POV
The final piece of the puzzle is the exit – or at least, the expansion. POV handles the “Market & VC Linkages.”
- The Focus: This pillar, supported by the UK-Kenya Tech Hub, looks at cross-border growth, specifically into the UK market.
- The Value: For an investor, knowing a startup has a pathway to a market with stronger purchasing power (like the UK) significantly de-risks the investment.
Critical Take: Will it Work?
The democratization of angel investing is a noble goal, but it is fraught with friction. The requirement of a USD 1,000 commitment is a clever filter; it is high enough to ensure seriousness but low enough to be accessible to mid-level professionals, not just High-Net-Worth Individuals (HNWIs).
However, the success of this program relies heavily on the quality of the startups coming out of Anza Village. If the “Startup School” cannot produce ventures that justify the capital, the new syndicates will burn their fingers on their very first deal – which is the fastest way to kill a nascent angel ecosystem.
Furthermore, the program promises “cross-border deal flow.” This is ambitious. Connecting a Nairobi-based micro-syndicate to UK markets requires navigating complex regulatory environments. If POV can pull this off, it creates a corridor that few other African accelerators have managed to build effectively.
How to Join
The program is currently open for applications, targeting:
- Individual aspiring angels.
- Existing investment groups (Chamas).
- Professionals looking to formalise their side-investments.
The Deadline: The release states applications close on Monday, 30 January 2026. (Note: In 2026, January 30 is a Friday. Applicants should assume the deadline is likely the end of that week, but getting it in by Monday the 26th might be safer to avoid administrative limbo).
Application Link: Apply Here
