Helping the diaspora
invest in Africa's farms and factories.
We find and vet real farms and factories across Africa — then make it simple for the diaspora to invest in them. See the operators we're tracking right now.
While the platform finalizes regulatory readiness, our team is already on the ground — and available for paid engagements today.
Welcome — wherever you're reading this from. Built for the African diaspora across 15+ countries.
Where we work today · Tap a country to see its projects
Where We've Been. Where We're Going.
Two tracks across one continent — our active deal pipeline today in Ghana, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Kenya and Rwanda, and this July's Investment Deal Tour across Namibia, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Mozambique and Tanzania.
Where we've been
- Founded as the diaspora bridge to African opportunity
- Partnered with Altura for deal-sourcing & diligence
- Built a vetted pipeline of African factories & founders
Where we're going
- Investment Deal Tour 2026 — commencing July across 5 markets
- Cameras to the factory floor: founder stories, broadcast worldwide
- Connecting vetted operators with global diaspora capital
Active Pipeline
Deal Tour 2026
Back real businesses across Africa.
Africa's farms and factories are ready to grow, but they struggle to get funding. At the same time, many people in the diaspora want a meaningful way to invest back home. Afrikey is being built to connect the two.
Invest in small amounts (planned)
We're building the platform so you'll be able to own a share of a business without having to buy the whole thing — once we launch to verified investors.
See where your money goes
You'll be able to follow each project's progress and earnings clearly and openly.
Follows U.S. rules
Any future investment will follow U.S. securities law and be open only to verified accredited investors, with proper paperwork.
Our focus
The Daily Wire.
Live headlines from across Africa's agro-industrial economy — agribusiness, processing, manufacturing, and the capital flowing into them. Refreshed throughout the day from independent sources.
How it works.
From a farm or factory in Africa to your account — here's how it works, step by step.
We find and check
Our local team finds promising farms and factories and checks them carefully before we ever consider them.
We divide it into shares
We turn each business into digital shares, so you can own a small, clearly-defined part of it.
You invest and follow along
Once we launch, verified investors will be able to invest with the proper paperwork and follow how their project is doing.
"Your money first sits safely in an insured U.S. bank account and is held in short-term U.S. government bonds for safety — before any of it goes to the business in Africa."
African Manufacturers — Building Africa's Future
An invitation to African factory owners & founders. We bring our cameras to your factory and share your story with a wide audience — helping connect you with investors across the diaspora. Starting July 2026.
We're looking for
- Agro-Processing
- Plastic & Packaging Manufacturing
- Construction Materials Manufacturing
- Mineral Value Addition & Industrial Processing
- FMCG & Consumer Goods Manufacturing
Selected companies will
- Host Afrikey-led factory visits & livestreams
- Be featured in our documentary series
- Founder spotlight reels across TikTok, Reels & YouTube
- Connect with investors across the diaspora
- Reach audiences across Africa and the diaspora
- Meet potential partners for growth
Send us a video (under 2 minutes): why we should showcase your factory and why you want to partner with Afrikey. Filmed on your phone is fine — strong submissions may be featured ahead of the tour. Apply below, then email your video to maria@iafrikey.com.
Sectors Under Evaluation
Edible-Oil Processing Facility
Ethiopia
Cocoa Processing Plant
Ghana
Shea Butter Production
Ghana
Cold Storage & Dried Fruit
Rwanda
Opportunities are first evaluated on the ground by our senior advisor Sintayehu Gochel Birru in Addis Ababa — 28+ years across project finance, international trade, and agro-processing — before being handed to our due-diligence team for full underwriting.
Engage Us Directly — Today
The platform is pre-launch. Our operating team is not.
While we finish regulatory readiness on the AKT platform, our team is already in seven African markets — sourcing acquisitions, overseeing portfolios, and structuring capital for diaspora investors and family offices who want to move now.
We don't write reports. We make decisions and execute them with you.
Strategy Session
Starts with a free 20-min qualifying call. The paid 60-min session with Jesse is $350 — credited toward any engagement signed within 60 days.
Acquisitions
We find, vet, structure, and close African business acquisitions for diaspora buyers.
Learn MoreCapital Advisory
Deal structuring and capital placement for African operators and diaspora investors.
Learn MoreThe Afrikey Token (AKT)
The Afrikey Token (AKT) is simply a digital share of a real African business. It runs on secure blockchain technology and follows U.S. securities law.
What it is
A secure digital share of a real business
The rules
Follows U.S. law, with identity checks for everyone
What you get
A share of the profits and a say in decisions
Safety
Independently audited
For the first time, someone in Atlanta can own a small, verified share of a real African factory — with their money safely backed by U.S. government bonds.
— Jesse Lesuer, Founder
How we keep
your money safe
Several layers of protection, designed to keep your money safe at every step.
Our long-term goal is to grow into a platform managing $250 million for our community, handled carefully to keep that money safe between investments.
This is our long-term goal for the company — not an offer to invest or a description of anything available today.
Our partnership with Altura
Afrikey is backed by Altura, an experienced private-equity firm. Altura finds and checks the businesses — today in Ghana, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Kenya, and Rwanda — and helps manage them. Afrikey handles the technology, sign-ups, and following the rules.
Backed by U.S. Treasuries
Every dollar is first placed in a separate, insured U.S. bank account. That money is then held in short-term U.S. government bonds. These bonds act as a safety cushion that helps protect your money if a project falls short.
If a project doesn't perform as hoped, these bonds can be sold first to help cover the gap — before any loss reaches you.
Your money
What people invest
Insured escrow
Held safely in a U.S. bank
U.S. Treasuries
Government bonds, for safety
African businesses
Vetted farms & factories
Our plan ahead.
A simple timeline of what we're building and when — step by step.
Launch the platform
Open our secure investor portal where you can sign up and follow your investments.
Our first investment (targeted)
We aim to back our first food-processing business — an established operation with proven buyers for its products — while reviewing others in Ghana, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Kenya, and Rwanda. Subject to regulatory approval and investor verification.
Grow and add a way to sell
Back more food-processing businesses, grow to five active projects, and add a marketplace where investors can buy and sell their shares.
Leadership Team
The founder and in-country advisors behind every deal — bridging two continents.
Jesse Lesuer
CEO & Founder — Afrikey · Founder — Altura PE
Jesse Lesuer has spent more than 20 years building, buying, and growing companies. He began his career helping run one of the era's largest corporate technology projects — The Vanguard Group's $50 million Y2K program — coordinating budgets, vendors, and deadlines across a huge, high-stakes operation. Keeping complex projects on track has shaped how he has worked ever since.
By age 27 he was developing and investing in real estate across several U.S. states. Over the next two decades he bought, improved, and sold businesses in a range of industries — learning each one from the inside. He founded Altura PE to invest with that same hands-on approach, and created Afrikey to bring it to carefully vetted farms and factories across Africa, opening up a market most U.S. investors cannot reach on their own.
KPMG will serve as our auditor.
Bringing Big Four audit and assurance standards to Afrikey's reporting as we scale.
Advisors
Seasoned operators on the ground informing every deal we underwrite.
Sintayehu Gochel Birru
Senior Advisor — Business Evaluation & Origination, Ethiopia
Our in-country advisor responsible for the first-pass evaluation of opportunities in Ethiopia and the wider African pipeline. Sintayehu visits operators, reviews feasibility, and qualifies deals on the ground before handing vetted candidates to our due-diligence team for full underwriting. Addis Ababa–based finance and trade veteran with 28+ years across banking, project finance, manufacturing, and agro-processing. Formerly Project & Relationship Manager at Commercial Bank of Ethiopia, Branch Manager at NIB International and Wegagen Bank (overseeing 105+ staff and ETB 32M+ in branch profits), and Manager of Project Finance & Trade at Kerchanshe — Ethiopia's largest coffee exporter. Currently General Manager at GDSG Import Export P.L.C., leading industrial and agro-processing projects with teams of up to 200.
MBA, Project Management — Indian Institute of Business Management · B.A. Economics — Addis Ababa University
Additional advisory appointments across Ghana, Nigeria, Kenya, and Rwanda to be announced as deal flow opens in each market.
Frequently Asked Questions
Not sure where to start?
Tell us what you're looking for.
Pick what brings you here and we'll point you the right way — and you can add any specific questions in the form. It goes straight to the right person on our team.
Which One Are You?
Read carefully — these are very different roles. Pick the one that describes you, not the one that sounds closest. Each path goes to a different team.
Important: All submissions are confidential. By submitting you consent to be contacted by Afrikey regarding your inquiry. This website is informational only and does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation to buy any security. Any future offerings will be made solely under SEC Regulation D Rule 506(c) via formal offering documents to verified accredited investors.