Fast Forward Venture Studio and Fund
Industry Focus
Geographic Focus
Fast Forward is an early-stage venture studio and fund on a mission to unlock Africa's technology potential by backing transformational companies led by African founders. Operating as both a venture studio that builds companies from scratch and a syndicated fund that invests in pre-seed African startups, Fast Forward works alongside dynamic entrepreneurs to scale ideas that can impact 10 million+ people and achieve over $10 million ARR within 3-5 years. The venture studio selects up to 10 ideas annually with priority on platform and infrastructure plays, recruiting experienced operators to lead these ventures. Fast Forward provides $100,000 in exchange for up to 20% equity, along with comprehensive value-add including co-founder recruitment, engineering support, product strategy, growth execution, and administrative operations. Founded by Opeyemi Awoyemi (founder of Jobberman, Nigeria's largest job site) and Omolara Awoyemi (former country manager of Jumia Pay and program manager at Facebook/Meta), the organization has backed 45+ startups with a 16x multiple on money invested. Fast Forward's syndicated fund invests $20,000-$50,000 in select pre-seed African startups and provides pro-rata follow-on funding for venture studio companies. With operations across San Francisco, Austin, New York, and Lagos, Fast Forward combines deep operational expertise in African markets with extensive U.S. connections to accelerate founder success.
2021
18 Companies
3
3X Higher