Factore Ventures

Factore Ventures invests at the pre-seed and seed stages. The firm believes its deep technical expertise and in-market knowledge allow it to assess both the commercial and impact potential of technologies at very early stages of development. The typical check size falls between $250,000 and $750,000.

The firm uses a thesis-based investing approach. It conducts extensive market research, tracks relevant technological innovations, and uses techno-economic analysis to map how a market must evolve to benefit the base of the pyramid. It forms a specific investment thesis from that research and allocates capital only to ventures that can accelerate the required market disruption.

Factore Ventures is currently focused entirely on technology ventures that can create impact in sub-Saharan Africa, regardless of where the company is headquartered. Historically the firm has also been active in Latin America and India, but its present mandate has consolidated around the African continent.

Yes. The firm combines capital with a structured post-investment support offering. This includes active board participation, access to a network of pre-vetted service providers, product development partnerships, and introductions to its global network of advisors and co-investors. Factor E Labs also serves as a dedicated R&D function that can partner with portfolio companies on technology validation.

Factore Ventures focuses on four core industry verticals within climate technology: mobility, agriculture, access to energy, and water. Its portfolio spans hardware and software innovations applied to these sectors in emerging markets, including biogas systems, solar-powered food dehydration, electric motorcycle fleets, and renewable-energy grid software.

Factor E Labs is the in-house innovation and R&D arm of Factore Ventures. While the venture firm makes equity investments, Factor E Labs conducts the primary research, market analysis, and technology validation that informs the firm’s investment theses. This dual structure gives Factore Ventures a proprietary research capability that feeds directly into its deal-selection process and post-investment product development support.

Investment decisions are led by Managing Partner Morgan DeFoort and Partner Tenbite Ermias. DeFoort brings a technical background from leading R&D programs at Colorado State University's Energy Institute, while Ermias brings over 20 years of development-finance and management-consulting experience, most recently as Head of Africa at British International Investment.