The Aquarius Foundation mobilizes and deploys philanthropic and catalytic capital into social enterprises and mission-driven businesses that improve economic stability, access to healthcare, education, and community resilience across Sub-Saharan Africa.
We help African social enterprises access the right capital at the right time. From investor identification and outreach to due diligence and close, we work alongside you to connect your enterprise to funders who share your values and understand your market.
Learn moreEvery enterprise in our portfolio has been personally vetted. Whether you deploy through equity, debt, concessional instruments, or grants, we can connect you to ventures that match your mandate.
View portfolioWe help vetted social enterprises across Sub-Saharan Africa access aligned capital from US$250K to US$5M, including equity, debt, concessional instruments, grants, and program-related investments.
We begin by learning your business at the deepest level: your model, traction, team, and vision. Then we study the raise itself, including the amount, instrument, timeline, and the specific type of investor who will be the right fit, both financially and in terms of values.
From there, we go to work on your behalf. No cold outreach. Every introduction we make is warm, targeted, and directed at investors with an Africa-inclusive mandate who are actively deploying into your stage and sector.
Deep Discovery
Learn your business, understand your raise, define your ideal investor profile
Investor Targeting
Identify aligned investors from our mapped network of 650+ impact investors, including philanthropists, foundations, angels, VCs, impact funds, DFIs, and family offices
Outreach and Pitching
Pitch on your behalf, make targeted introductions, and set up initial screening calls with qualified investors
Due Diligence and Close
Support you through data room preparation, financial review, and term sheet negotiation, all the way through to close
By 2040, more than 20 million people will enter the African workforce every single year. The continent currently produces roughly 3 million formal jobs per year. That is a structural shortfall of 17 million jobs, annually, for a generation.
SMEs are the only solution capable of absorbing that demand at scale. They already employ 80% of Africa's workforce. But they face a $331 billion capital gap, and 7 in 10 fail or remain stagnant within their first two years.
Jobs must be created annually across Sub-Saharan Africa to absorb workforce growth. The difference between an SME that fails in its first two years and one that survives, grows, and hires is access to the right capital at the right time. This is where we operate.
Africa receives a fraction of global investment capital, despite representing 18% of the world's population and the youngest workforce on Earth. Yet billions are flowing into African enterprises each year, and the trajectory is accelerating. Africa's capital markets are following the same curve that transformed India's investment ecosystem over the past decade.
We believe philanthropy is the missing piece: catalytic financing that helps early-stage enterprises become ready for commercial and institutional investment. Not charity. Not grants with no accountability. Patient, flexible capital deployed with commercial discipline into the precise moment where it shapes a company's trajectory. Our impact measurement is anchored to the UN Sustainable Development Goals, the GIIN's IRIS+ catalogue, the IMP Five Dimensions, and the 2X Challenge gender-lens criteria.
Too commercially mature for microfinance. Too early-stage for conventional bank lending. Too risky for institutional capital. And too small for DFIs, whose average transaction is $56.9 million. These enterprises need $20K to $500K, on terms that match how early-stage businesses actually grow. That gap is exactly where we focus.
$331 billion in capital that African SMEs need goes unmet every year. Existing structures were not built for this moment. Microfinance is too small. Grants lack accountability. DFIs are too slow. Impact VC has contracted 53% and is retreating to later-stage businesses. The gap in the middle is where catalytic philanthropy delivers the greatest return per dollar.
We apply a gender lens across the portfolio, targeting 40% or more women-led or women-owned enterprises. Below is a snapshot of the ventures we are actively mobilizing capital for.
Interested in our deal flow? Reach out to learn more about any of these ventures.
Michael founded The Aquarius Foundation from a clear conviction: the world does not lack capital. It lacks better pathways for deploying that capital where it can do the most good. He works across philanthropy, impact investing, and venture support, helping align investors, donors, and catalytic partners with opportunities positioned to create lasting social and economic value across Sub-Saharan Africa.
As Executive Director, Michael leads end-to-end fundraising advisory for vetted African enterprises. He applies a gender lens that targets 40% or more women-led or women-owned enterprises, with impact measurement anchored to the UN Sustainable Development Goals, the GIIN's IRIS+ catalogue, the IMP Five Dimensions, and the 2X Challenge gender-lens criteria.
Before founding TAF, Michael spent nearly a decade as a food entrepreneur and COO of a pioneering cacao company, where he built and managed ethical supply chains across Latin America, led international expansion, and oversaw operations, logistics, and finance. That hands-on experience building businesses is what makes him effective at representing the entrepreneurs he works with today.
To date, Michael has worked with over a dozen organizations, managed over US$30M in fundraising, mapped 650+ impact investors, and grown an audience of nearly 12K followers as a thought leader in African impact capital. He holds a degree in Biological and Biomedical Sciences from Western Michigan University and serves as an Ambassador for THE REAL Mental Health Foundation.
Whether you lead a social enterprise seeking capital, a funder looking for vetted opportunities, or someone who believes in this mission, we would like to hear from you.