Development Bank of Southern Africa
VC Fund
Midrand, South Africa
Development Bank of Southern Africa is a VC fund in Midrand focused on Mobile and Banking. The Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA) is a state owned entity with the purpose of accelerating sustainable socio-economic development and improve the quality of life of the people of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) by driving financial and non-financial investments in the social and economic infrastructure sectors.-Social infrastructure: Infrastructure aimed at addressing backlogs and expediting the delivery of essential social services to support sustainable living conditions and a better quality of life within communities - Economic infrastructure: Infrastructure aimed at addressing capacity constraints and bottlenecks in order to optimise economic growth potentialThe DBSA has prioritised water, energy, transport and ICT as its key focus areas.
- Total investments:
- 8
- Last investment:
- Lead investor:
- 50%
Last updated:
For AI agents: llms.txt
Industries Development Bank of Southern Africa invests in
Stages Development Bank of Southern Africa invests in
Countries Development Bank of Southern Africa invests in
Round sizes
Round size
- Debt Financing
- $15M–$753M
Investment Focus
Industry
- Mobile 2 (25%)
- Banking 2 (25%)
- Finance 2 (25%)
- Internet 2 (25%)
- Transportation 2 (25%)
Stage
- Debt Financing 5 (63%)
- Seed 1 (13%)
- Series H 1 (13%)
- Venture - Series Unknown 1 (13%)
Country
- South Africa 3 (38%)
- Kenya 1 (13%)
- Angola 1 (13%)
- Senegal 1 (13%)
- Mauritius 1 (13%)
Investments
| Company | Description | Round | Links |
|---|---|---|---|
| Zimi Charge enables to charge sustainably using our mobile app and network of stations. | $3.1M / Venture - Series Unknown / Jun 04, 2026 | ||
| Lobito Atlantic Railway supports mining companies, freight operators and regional traders. | $753M / Debt Financing / Dec 17, 2025 | ||
| Red Rocket is a renewable energy integrated power plant (IPP) that designs, develops, and distributes clean energy. | Debt Financing / Sep 30, 2025 | ||
| Zero Carbon Charge is a South African firm pioneering a nationwide network of off-grid, ultra-fast electric vehicle (EV) charging stations powered solely by renewable energy, principally solar, and supplemented by battery storage. | $5.6M / Seed / May 26, 2025 | ||
| BNDE is a bank that is dedicated to the economic development of Senegal. | $74.9M / Debt Financing / Apr 26, 2024 | ||
| AZA Finance is a global payments and FX fintech. Founded in Nairobi, AZA Finance makes it easier for companies around the world to exchange currencies, make payments, and settle easily in all major African and G20 currencies (including digital currencies). AZA Finance was the first company in the world to trade digital currencies using mobile moneyand the first ever to make a market directly between digital currencies and African currencies. They service frontier market businesses as well as multinational corporates paying partners and suppliers around the world, and works with several of the largest global remittance firms to send white-label payments to dozens of bank networks and mobile money operators across Africa. | $15M / Debt Financing / Oct 22, 2019 | ||
| O3b will transform communications by deploying an innovative Medium Earth Orbit satellite constellation, capable of offering customers connectivity which is better, faster and more affordable. We have the flexibility to meet the capacity and network demands of Resellers, Telcos, Mobile/Wireless Operators, ISPs and Government Entities in 177countries across Asia, Africa, Latin America and the Middle East. | $460M / Series H / Dec 10, 2015 | ||
| SMILE Telecoms is a broadband provider company. Founded in 2007, Smile Telecoms says it has more than 300 million potential customers in Nigeria, Tanzania, Uganda, and the DR Congo. Internet penetration in all four of Smile’s markets is still low so increasing the availability of speedy mobile connections can help more people go online, especiallywhen combined with increased smartphone ownership. | $315M / Debt Financing / Sep 08, 2015 |
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FAQ
What does Development Bank of Southern Africa invest in?
Development Bank of Southern Africa invests primarily in Mobile, Banking and Finance startups, most often at Debt Financing and Seed stage. Most of the 8 investments tracked by Shizune back companies in South Africa. The Investment Focus section breaks down every industry, stage and country in the portfolio.
What round sizes does Development Bank of Southern Africa invest in?
Development Bank of Southern Africa typically joins rounds of $15M–$753M at Debt Financing. These are whole funding-round sizes, not Development Bank of Southern Africa's own check, which is rarely disclosed: the 10th–90th percentile of the confirmed public funding rounds Development Bank of Southern Africa took part in.
When did Development Bank of Southern Africa last invest?
The most recent investment recorded for Development Bank of Southern Africa closed in Jun 2026. Shizune tracks 8 investments in total for this profile, including round sizes, stages and portfolio companies, all sourced from confirmed public funding rounds and refreshed monthly.
Is Shizune's investor data accurate?
Yes — every stat on this profile is calculated from confirmed public funding rounds monitored across hundreds of sources since 2020. This profile was last refreshed in Oct 2026 and is updated monthly. Spotted something off? Use the “Suggest an edit” link near the top of the page.
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