DFX Intelligence
Venture Capital Intelligence
Firms, funds, partners, companies and rounds from sworn filings, firm sites and announcements, kept as a graph with a date and a source on every edge. Facts, inferences and estimates are labelled as such. A fund target is never a close, GAV is never dry powder, and a round size is never an investor’s check.
Firms / DFS Lab
DFS Lab
Writing and research from DFS on African tech, digital financial services, AI, and emerging market investing.
venture manager, reported GAV $3.9M across 14 vehicles
Importance
22
moderate
Active deployment
33
moderate
Emerging
0
low
Completeness
75
high
Freshness
100
high
Research priority
11
low
Identity and regulatory footprint
- Headquarters
- Paris, Franceadviserinfo.sec.gov
- Office address
- 44 AVENUE DAUMESNIL, Paris, 75012adviserinfo.sec.gov
- Business phone
- 917-324-5987adviserinfo.sec.gov
- Website
- http://www.dfslab.net
- SEC adviser type
- exempt reporting adviseradviserinfo.sec.gov
- SEC exemption claimed
- venture capital fund adviseradviserinfo.sec.govItem 2.B(1): advises solely venture capital funds
- Latest Form ADV
- Feb 6, 2024
- Private funds reported
- 13 (13 venture capital funds)adviserinfo.sec.gov
- Private fund gross assets
- $3.9Madviserinfo.sec.govreported GAV of the funds, the adviser's own number; not fund size, not dry powder
- business phone
- 917-324-5987adviserinfo.sec.govpublished by the subject
Stated thesis versus observed behaviour
2 observed deals
Stated (the firm’s website)
- Sectors
- ai, fintech, consumer, hardware, industrial
- Stages
- seed
- Geography
- africa, asia, emerging markets, southeast
- Check size
- not stated; DFX does not estimate checks from round sizes
- Self-described
- venture capital
Observed (from deals on record)
Stage at participation: no observed deals yet
Stage at first entry: no observed deals yet
Sectors
unknown 100%
lead rate 0%follow-on rate 0%new logos, 12 months 2
Funds and vehicles
14 reported
| Vehicle | Type | Vintage | Lifecycle | Reported GAV | Owners | Form D sold | Latest Form D |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cybernetic Commerce Fund I, a Series of Dfs Lab Digital Economy Fund, LLC | SPV or co-invest vehicle | 2025 form d first sale | Newly closed | unknown | unknown | $1.1M of $1.1M | Oct 30, 2025 |
| DFS Lab Stellar Africa Fund I, a Series of Dfs Lab Digital Economy Fund, LLC | SPV or co-invest vehicle | 2022 form d first sale | Active deployment | $1.8M Feb 6, 2024 | 1 | $2.0M of $2.0M | Mar 1, 2023 |
| Frontier Commerce Fund IV, a Series of Dfs Lab Digital Economy Fund, LLC | SPV or co-invest vehicle | 2022 form d first sale | Active deployment | $750,000 Feb 6, 2024 | 5 | $750,000 of $750,000 | Sep 30, 2022 |
| DFS Lab Tanda Spv, a Series of Assure Labs 2022, LLC | SPV or co-invest vehicle | 2022 name year | Active deployment | $82,500 Feb 6, 2024 | 7 | $82,500 of $82,500 | Mar 3, 2022 |
| DFS Lab Ando Investment Spv II, a Series of Dfs Lab Spv Master 2, LLC | SPV or co-invest vehicle | 2022 form d first sale | Active deployment | $53,001 Feb 6, 2024 | 9 | $26,250 of $26,250 | Aug 15, 2022 |
| DFS Lab Sabi Investment Spv, a Series of Dfs Lab Spv Master 2, LLC | SPV or co-invest vehicle | 2022 form d first sale | Active deployment | $47,000 Feb 6, 2024 | 6 | $47,000 of $47,000 | May 18, 2022 |
| DFS Lab Investment Catlog, a Series of Dfs Lab Spv Master 2, LLC | SPV or co-invest vehicle | 2022 form d first sale | Active deployment | $31,500 Feb 6, 2024 | 5 | $31,500 of $31,500 | May 11, 2022 |
| DFS Lab Bumpa Investment Spv, a Series of Dfs Lab Spv Master 2, LLC | SPV or co-invest vehicle | 2022 form d first sale | Active deployment | $28,000 Feb 6, 2024 | 5 | $28,000 of $28,000 | Nov 17, 2022 |
| Frontier Commerce Fund III, a Series of Dfs Lab Digital Economy Fund, LLC | SPV or co-invest vehicle | 2021 form d first sale | Mature | $470,000 Feb 6, 2024 | 6 | $470,000 of $470,000 | Jan 31, 2022 |
| DFS Lab Nala Investment Spv, a Series of Assure Labs 2021, LLC | SPV or co-invest vehicle | 2021 name year | Mature | $155,480 Feb 6, 2024 | 12 | $155,480 of $155,480 | Jan 26, 2022 |
| DFS Lab Onepipe Investment Spv a Series of Assure Labs 2021 LLC | SPV or co-invest vehicle | 2021 name year | Mature | $72,020 Feb 6, 2024 | 8 | $72,020 of $72,020 | Sep 29, 2021 |
| DFS Lab Ando Spv, a Series of Assure Labs 2021, LLC | SPV or co-invest vehicle | 2021 name year | Mature | $53,001 Feb 6, 2024 | 9 | $52,961 of $52,961 | Jul 8, 2021 |
| DFS Lab Suplias Investment Spv, a Series of Assure Labs 2021, LLC | SPV or co-invest vehicle | 2021 name year | Mature | $28,000 Feb 6, 2024 | 7 | $28,000 of $28,000 | Jul 14, 2021 |
| DFS Lab Frontier Fintech II, LLC | Fund | 2020 form d first sale | Mature | $400,000 Feb 6, 2024 | 8 | $400,000 of $400,000 | Nov 2, 2020 |
GAV is the gross asset value the adviser reported on Form ADV for the vehicle, never the fund’s committed size and never dry powder. Form D sold is the amount sold as of the latest filing, never a final close.
Investment team
16 current, 0 departed
Leila Haroon
AnalystSenior Research Analyst
Saude Amina Atoyebi
Board or advisoryPublic Sector Expert; Board of Directors, EFInA; Former Deputy Chief of Staff, Kaduna State
Billy Owino
Founder or executiveFormer CEO, TransUnion Kenya
Buhle Golsar
Founder or executiveFormer CEO, Jumo
Jake Kendall
General partnerGeneral Partner
Stephen Deng
General partnerGeneral Partner
Sandisiwe Ncube
OtherDevelopment Economist
Sharon Kinyanjui
OtherPayments Specialist; Former Head of EMEA, WorldRemit
Veethi Vyas
OtherResearch Lead
Guang Zao Deng
PartnerMember · since Sep 1, 2018
Joseph Benson-Aruna
PartnerPartner, Head of Entrepreneur Support
Irma Grundling
Platform and operationsStatistician; Head of Survey Design for 40+ nationally representative surveys
Osarumen Osamuyi
Platform and operationsTechnology & Media Analyst; Former African Messaging Platforms Lead, Meta
Jake Kendall
PrincipalDirector · since Sep 1, 2018
Nazu Muinde
PrincipalDirector, Strategy for Open Banking Europe, Mastercard
Rafael Mazer
PrincipalFormer Director, Consumer Protection, Innovations for Poverty Action
Investments on record
2 edges, 2 companies, 0 partner-attributed
| Company | Round | Role | Partner | Round size | This investor | Date | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Github | portfolio listing | unknown | unknown | unknown | unknown | Sep 16, 2026 | Fact Venture organization websites (about, team, portfolio, thesis, news pages) |
| Checker | Funding round | participant | unknown | $8.0M | unknown | May 19, 2026 | Fact Press release wires (Business Wire, PR Newswire, GlobeNewswire public RSS) |
“This investor” is the amount disclosed for this investor alone; it is unknown unless a source said it. The round size is the whole round.
Co-investors
15 relationships from shared deals, counted for the whole firm
Parade Route LLC 1 shared · one timeSection Partners 1 shared · one timeNotation Capital Management, LLC 1 shared · one timeInstitutional Venture 1 shared · one timeElectric Capital Partners, LLC 1 shared · one timeGeorgian Partners Growth L.P. 1 shared · one timeCausation Ventures, L.L.C. 1 shared · one timeCNK Equity Partners I, LLC 1 shared · one timeBetaworks Ventures Management, LLC 1 shared · one timeAirtm 1 shared · one timeComplyAdvantage 1 shared · one timeFlutterwave 1 shared · one timeMESH 1 shared · one timeBitso 1 shared · one timeSNZ Capital 1 shared · one time
Limited partners
0 disclosed
No LP commitment on record. An LP edge needs a public disclosure with a quote: a pension report (see Limited partners for the plans read), a fund announcement naming the LP, or a Form ADV owner. The fund page carries the LP’s reported performance.
Timeline
14 dated events
- Mar 8, 2023Frontier Commerce Fund IV, a Series of Dfs Lab Digital Economy Fund, LLC first reported on Form ADV by DFS Lab (Venture Capital Fund), GAV $750,000
- Mar 8, 2023DFS Lab Ando Investment Spv II, a Series of Dfs Lab Spv Master 2, LLC first reported on Form ADV by DFS Lab (Venture Capital Fund), GAV $53,001
- Mar 8, 2023DFS Lab Sabi Investment Spv, a Series of Dfs Lab Spv Master 2, LLC first reported on Form ADV by DFS Lab (Venture Capital Fund), GAV $47,000
- Mar 8, 2023DFS Lab Investment Catlog, a Series of Dfs Lab Spv Master 2, LLC first reported on Form ADV by DFS Lab (Venture Capital Fund), GAV $31,500
- Mar 8, 2023DFS Lab Bumpa Investment Spv, a Series of Dfs Lab Spv Master 2, LLC first reported on Form ADV by DFS Lab (Venture Capital Fund), GAV $28,000
- Mar 8, 2023DFS Lab Stellar Africa Fund I, a Series of Dfs Lab Digital Economy Fund, LLC first reported on Form ADV by DFS Lab (Venture Capital Fund), GAV $1,750,000
- Jun 29, 2022DFS Lab Frontier Fintech II, LLC first reported on Form ADV by DFS Lab (Private Equity Fund), GAV $400,000Fund first reported on Form ADVFundsFactDFS Lab Frontier Fintech II, LLCSEC Form ADV filing data 2011 to 2024 (every filing, Schedule D 7.B.(1) private funds, Schedules A/B)
- Jun 29, 2022DFS Lab first filed Form ADV (ERA)First SEC adviser filingOrganizationFactSEC Form ADV filing data 2011 to 2024 (every filing, Schedule D 7.B.(1) private funds, Schedules A/B)
- Jun 29, 2022DFS Lab Onepipe Investment Spv a Series of Assure Labs 2021 LLC first reported on Form ADV by DFS Lab (Private Equity Fund), GAV $72,020
- Jun 29, 2022Frontier Commerce Fund III, a Series of Dfs Lab Digital Economy Fund, LLC first reported on Form ADV by DFS Lab (Private Equity Fund), GAV $470,000
- Jun 29, 2022DFS Lab Suplias Investment Spv, a Series of Assure Labs 2021, LLC first reported on Form ADV by DFS Lab (Private Equity Fund), GAV $28,000
- Jun 29, 2022DFS Lab Nala Investment Spv, a Series of Assure Labs 2021, LLC first reported on Form ADV by DFS Lab (Private Equity Fund), GAV $155,480
- Jun 29, 2022DFS Lab Tanda Spv, a Series of Assure Labs 2022, LLC first reported on Form ADV by DFS Lab (Private Equity Fund), GAV $82,500Fund first reported on Form ADVFundsFactDFS Lab Tanda Spv, a Series of Assure Labs 2022, LLCSEC Form ADV filing data 2011 to 2024 (every filing, Schedule D 7.B.(1) private funds, Schedules A/B)
- Jun 29, 2022DFS Lab Ando Spv, a Series of Assure Labs 2021, LLC first reported on Form ADV by DFS Lab (Private Equity Fund), GAV $53,001Fund first reported on Form ADVFundsFactDFS Lab Ando Spv, a Series of Assure Labs 2021, LLCSEC Form ADV filing data 2011 to 2024 (every filing, Schedule D 7.B.(1) private funds, Schedules A/B)
Classification history
- Sep 12, 2026Micro VC (confirmed, 95%, cls-1)venture manager, reported GAV $3.9M across 14 vehicles
- Sep 12, 2026Micro VC (confirmed, 95%, cls-1)venture manager, reported GAV $3.9M across 13 vehicles
Evidence
35 observations from 2 sources