Lagos, January 13th, 2026 – Silverbacks Holdings, a leading private investment firm focused on high-growth companies in underserved African industries, announces strategic milestones: fresh capital injection for its sports platform from Hollywood actor and director Boris Kodjoe as well as South African mega producer Pepsi Pokane; and recording its 10th exit resulting from the recent acquisition of open banking fintech startup, Mono.
This 10th exit comes from early-stage portfolio company, Mono, described as the "Plaid for Africa" which has recently been acquired in an all-share transaction by fellow Silverbacks' portfolio company Flutterwave. The firm has now become foundational for Nigeria's digital lending ecosystem powering millions of bank account linkages for customers like Moniepoint and PalmPay.
Over the last five years, Silverbacks Holdings has demonstrated a distinct ability to generate timely liquidity and scale institutional platforms across Africa and beyond, evidenced by an overall 13.7x cash-on-cash fintech blueprint. The firm recorded partial exits including 29.0x MOIC from LemFi, 24.3x from Flutterwave, 9.7x from Cassbana, 5.1x from Moove, 5.0x from OmniRetail, 3.7x from Kuda, which collectively delivered an overall regional performance averaging 9.7x MOIC in Egypt and 10.7x MOIC in Nigeria across sectors.
In a separate development, Hollywood actor, movie director and founder of Full Circle Africa, Boris Kodjoe, as well as South African movie producer and CEO of Film Afrika TV, Pepsi Pokane, have invested in Silverbacks' sports platform. They also join the firm's board of advisers.
"I'm excited to join this formidable force backing African Sports assets. Sports and entertainment are equally important in creating economic and cultural impact in Africa and beyond and they illustrate best the convening power of our diaspora on the global stage," said Kodjoe.
"Having been at the forefront of the African entertainment industry for decades, I recognize a game-changing convergence when I see one. Silverbacks' sports platform, with its blend of premier teams and tech innovation like AWFC, is poised to redefine how African sports content and intellectual property is created, distributed, and consumed globally. I'm proud to be an investor," added Pokane.
"Our successful exit from Mono, achieved through consolidation with Flutterwave, validates our early conviction in foundational African fintech. Concurrently, adding world-class icons like Boris, and Pepsi alongside Sandy to the cap tables of our Sports Portfolio, highlights Silverbacks' commitment to creating category-defining African assets that attract strategic capital and deliver global impact," Ibrahim Sagna, Silverbacks Holdings Chairman, concluded.
The firm's sports platform spans combat sports (Lagos-based African Warriors Fighting Championship - AWFC), a semi-finalist basketball team in the NBA's BAL tournament ("the Cape Town Tigers"), and the sports-tech innovator NERGii. NERGii has recently refined its energy-boosting innersoles and is heading into 2026 with a fast-growing base of users. Silverbacks Holdings is building the premier platform for African sports and entertainment to connect with the world.
They join a list of celebrities including Mr Eazi, Verdine White of Earth, Wind & Fire, Paxton Baker, Sandy Climan, as well as global sports marketing executives such as Gerry Erasme and high profile local investors such as Tokunboh Ismael from Alitheia Capital, Ashley Lewis from DPI, Lavanya Anand of Africinvest , Nneka Eze and Euler Bropleh from Vested World, Raj Kulasingam and Vishal Agarwal of V&R as well as Deepankar Rustangi from OmniRetail.
The firm continues to build significant positions in dominant platform builders in tech, sports, entertainment, and fashion operating on the global stage.
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About Silverbacks Holdings:
Established in 2019,Silverbacks Holdings is a Mauritius-based alternative investment firm selectively targeting high-growth opportunities in Africa's tech, sports, entertainment and the creative economy. The firm seeks to deliver superior returns while backing dominant platform builders expanding from Africa to the rest of the world.
For media inquiries:
Dina Kamel
Silverbacks Holdings' Head of PR, Communications, Events, and External Relations
