Allocator Media Podcast

Sir John Lazar was born in Johannesburg, South Africa. A classic engineer by training and mindset, today he is helping shape how Enza Capital, the venture firm he co-founded, thinks about the next major technological cycle: artificial intelligence. In this episode, Sir John explains why Africa should be a “maker, not just a taker” in AI, and why some of the continent’s biggest constraints could become competitive advantages. Besides his work at Enza, he also serves as President of the UK’s Royal Academy of Engineering and as Chair of the Raspberry Pi Foundation, a UK-registered charity that helps young people learn computing and digital skills. He co-founded Enza with Mike Mompi, Managing Partner, and David Cohen, a long-time friend. Enjoy!Learn more about Sir John Lazar | Enza Capital LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-lazar-3015372Website: https://enza.capitalLearn more about Chipo Muwowo | Allocator Media PodcastLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chipomuwowo/Website: https://allocator.media/

eFinance Investment Group has become part of the financial plumbing of Egypt’s economy. Its systems sit beneath a significant share of the country’s government and financial transactions, supporting the collection and movement of money across tax, customs, subsidies, public payroll and other critical services. But once a company becomes that embedded, where does the next phase of growth come from? In this episode, Ahmed Sobhy, Deputy CEO, explains how the firm plans to use the data flowing through its infrastructure to enable new financial products, the rationale behind the recent acquisition of Tamweely Financial Services, and how management approaches capital allocation. Enjoy!Learn more about Ahmed Sobhy | eFinance Investment Group LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ahmed-m-sobhy-67b30b6Website: https://www.efinanceinvestment.comLearn more about Chipo Muwowo | Allocator Media PodcastLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chipomuwowo/Website: https://allocator.media/

Africa’s venture capital ecosystem is still evolving, and Laura Davis, Co-CEO & Managing Partner at Renew Capital, believes solving the continent’s capital distribution challenge will be critical to what comes next. Renew Capital backs technology companies that hold valuable data on SMEs and helps them build lending products or partner with lenders to improve financing access for underserved SMEs. Laura also shares why founder resilience matters so much to her, and how venture debt could play a much larger role in Africa’s VC ecosystem. Enjoy!Learn more about Laura Davis | Renew Capital LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/laura-davis-25764430Website: https://www.renewcapital.comLearn more about Chipo Muwowo | Allocator Media PodcastLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chipomuwowo/Website: https://allocator.media/

Africa is not short of capital. The harder challenge is building the instruments, structures and markets that can put it to productive use. Anne-Marie Chidzero, Chief Investment Officer at FSD Africa Investments, the investment arm of FSD Africa, explains how her organisation uses risk capital to test new models, unlock local savings and create pathways for private investors to follow. We also discuss additionality, when development capital should step aside, and why building replicable financial infrastructure matters more than simply being first. Enjoy!Learn more about Anne-Marie Chidzero | FSD Africa InvestmentsLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anne-marie-chidzero-8077a61 Website: FSD Africa InvestmentsLearn more about Chipo Muwowo | Allocator Media PodcastLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chipomuwowo/Website: https://allocator.media/

After 17+ years in frontier market equities, Sruti Patel is pursuing what she calls a “quiet revolution” in African public markets – helping listed companies take greater control of how global investors see them. In this episode, she narrates why strong African businesses remain “interesting but misunderstood,” what investors underestimate about African management teams, and why better storytelling, communication and transparency matter. We also discuss her move from equity sales to building her company, Alignment. Enjoy!Learn more about Sruti Patel | AlignmentLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sruti-patel-014a1287Learn more about Chipo Muwowo | Allocator Media PodcastLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chipomuwowo/Website: https://allocator.media/

After 17 years in the British Army, Wayne Hennessy-Barrett made an unlikely move into African fintech. Today he leads 4G Capital, a fintech lender that provides millions of working capital loans to small businesses across Kenya and Uganda. In this episode, Wayne shares how the army shaped him as an entrepreneur, why 4G is betting on Africa’s smallest businesses, what 8 million loans have taught 4G about underwriting, how the firm blends tech with on-the-ground relationships, and what the digital lending industry still gets wrong today. Enjoy!Learn more about Wayne Hennessy-Barrett | 4G CapitalLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/waynehennessybarrett/ Website: 4G Capital Learn more about Chipo Muwowo | Allocator Media PodcastLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chipomuwowo/Website: https://allocator.media/

At 23, Finn Walker is probably one of the youngest people managing an Africa-focused public equity fund. In this episode, he explains why he believes African equities are “priced for catastrophe” and where the market may be getting it wrong. He discusses Heron’s core investment thesis, finding undervalued businesses with durable advantages, his contrarian exposure to Zimbabwe, and why time on the ground matters when investing across Africa’s fragmented public markets. Enjoy!Learn more about Finn Walker | Heron PartnersLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/finn-walker-618164145/Website: https://www.heron.africa/Learn more about Chipo Muwowo | Allocator Media PodcastLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chipomuwowo/Website: https://allocator.media/

What does the Chief Operating Officer inside a private investment firm actually do? In this episode, Nima Yussuf, COO at Silverbacks Holdings, a Mauritius-based pan-African investment firm backing growth-stage companies, explains. She goes further and shares why the operational function sits at the intersection of strategy and execution. She also delves into a variety of themes, for example: some common operational challenges that come from working across diverse African markets; why emerging managers should take operations seriously from Day 1; the early operational signs that a portfolio company may be in trouble; and why Silverbacks likes "second-act" founders. It's a different conversation to the ones we normally host on the podcast, but a very insightful and important one. Enjoy!Learn more about Nima Yussuf | Silverbacks HoldingsLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nimayussuf/Website: https://silverbacks.holdings/Learn more about Chipo Muwowo | Allocator Media PodcastLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chipomuwowo/Website: https://allocator.media/