Y Combinator, a prominent Silicon Valley accelerator, has produced four African unicorns, and increasingly, the founders it trained are now writing the cheques.
Here are 12 Y Combinator alumni who went from building startups to funding the next generation of entrepreneurs.
Kendall Ananyi — Tizeti (YC W17)
Ananyi co-founded Tizeti. He is an angel investor with over 40 startups and has averaged an exit almost every year since 2020. His investments include Paystack, Flutterwave (YC W16), and Reliance Health (formerly Kangpe) (YC W17).
Adegoke “Goke” Olubusi — Helium Health (YC W17)
Goke Olubusi is the founding partner of MAGIC Fund, a $40M early-stage venture capital firm. He has backed 250+ high-growth startups, including Bamboo (where he serves as a board member), Jasper, Retool, Bolt.com, and Novo.
Dimeji Sofowora
The Co-founder and Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of Helium Health serves as a General Partner at the MAGIC Fund.
Read also: Ten years after Paystack: what Y Combinator’s African portfolio looks like
Olugbenga “GB” Agboola — Flutterwave (YC W16)
As CEO of Flutterwave, Agboola is also investing through personal capital and through Resilience17 (formerly Berrywood), a venture studio he founded. His portfolio includes Curacel, Brass (later moved to Paystack), and Big Cabal Media. Through Resilience17 and its AI-focused accelerator, Go Time AI, he offers $200K in investment to African AI startups in exchange for an 8% equity stake. Portfolio companies include AltSchool, Bamboo, Klasha, and now-collapsed Pivo.
Kuassi Jimmy Kumako — Moneco (YC S22)
Kumako is the Co-founder & CTO at Moneco. He has also led engineering roles at Paystack, the first Nigerian YC-backed startup. He is a member of Benin Business Angel Network (BBAN), with which he backs early-stage tech founders across West Africa.
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Last updated: June 5, 2026
