“The future of Africa's growth will depend not only on access to capital but on the institutions that can structure, deploy and manage that capital effectively.”
Zedcrest Capital is the venture arm of Zedcrest Group, a Lagos-based financial services conglomerate founded by Adedayo Amzat in 2013 when he was 27 years old. Amzat built his early career trading fixed income at Access Bank Nigeria before launching Zedcrest Capital as a securities trading firm, and then expanding it into a multi-subsidiary group spanning consumer lending (Zedvance Finance), securities brokerage (Zedcap Partners / Zedcrest Securities), wealth management (Zedcrest Wealth), asset management (Zedcrest Investment Managers), and in 2026, a full investment banking division (Zedcrest Global Markets). The Financial Times named Zedcrest "Africa's Fastest Growing Financial Services Company" in 2022, and the group holds a BBB- investment grade credit rating from GCR, a Moody's affiliate.
On the venture side, Zedcrest Capital started as a debt and equity capital markets investor and gradually moved into startup investing. In August 2022, they launched a dedicated $10 million fund targeting pre-Series A stage startups across Africa. Their portfolio leans fintech-heavy -- which makes sense given the parent group's DNA in financial services -- and includes notable names like Leatherback (cross-border payments, where Zedcrest led a $10M round), AltSchool (edtech), Helium Health (healthtech), Indicina (credit infrastructure), Bankly (agency banking), Julaya (payments, Cote d'Ivoire), Simpu (customer engagement), Bento Africa (payroll), Flex Finance, and Lenco.
What makes Zedcrest different from most African VCs is the parent company sitting behind it. This is not a standalone fund -- it is a venture arm backed by a profitable, decade-old financial services group with deep institutional relationships, a securities dealing operation that partners with around 50 foreign portfolio investors, and a consumer lending business (Zedvance) that has disbursed credit to over one million individuals. That infrastructure gives portfolio companies a potential path to distribution, partnerships, and follow-on capital that a typical standalone fund cannot easily provide.
| Name | Role | X/Twitter | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adedayo Amzat | Founder & Group Managing Director | linkedin.com/in/adedayoamzat | Not verified |
| Luke Ofojebe, CFA | Chief Investment Officer | Not verified | Not verified |
| Ademola Akogun | MD, Investment Banking | Not verified | Not verified |
| Simbiat Bada | MD, Zedcrest Securities | Not verified | Not verified |
Note: The specific team running venture capital decisions at Zedcrest Capital is not publicly documented. The individuals listed above are the most senior leaders at the group level who influence investment strategy. "Not verified" means we could not confirm an active public profile -- we do not fabricate links.