RNAQ Holdings and Quick Angels Limited launched a GH₵300 million Scale-Up Fund on Wednesday, October 29, 2025, at the University of Professional Studies, Accra (UPSA) Auditorium, marking what industry observers describe as a pivotal moment in Ghana’s entrepreneurial financing landscape.
The initiative, themed “Scaling Dreams, Building Structures,” targets existing Ghanaian small and medium enterprises ready to expand sustainably and compete globally. Unlike traditional startup funding, this fund focuses exclusively on businesses that have already proven their viability and are positioned for growth.
President of RNAQ Holdings, Richard Nii Armah Quaye, stated that Ghana doesn’t lack talent or ideas but often lacks the capital and systems to scale. Speaking to entrepreneurs, investors, and government representatives at the launch event, he emphasized that scaling requires more than courage; it demands structure, discipline, and strategic capital alignment.
Quick Angels Chief Executive Officer Emmanuel Lamptey described the fund as a bridge between potential and prosperity. He revealed that over 300 Ghanaian-owned enterprises across agriculture, manufacturing, technology, fashion, and renewable energy sectors have already applied, collectively requesting more than GH₵1.3 billion in growth capital.
The response demonstrates significant pent-up demand for growth financing among established businesses. Nearly 40 percent of applicants are female-led businesses, reflecting the initiative’s gender-inclusive approach and the growing presence of women entrepreneurs in Ghana’s business ecosystem.
Quick Angels’ track record provides credibility to the ambitious initiative. The firm has invested in several successful Ghanaian brands, including Pizzaman-Chickenman, which has expanded to over 100 outlets nationwide, Sankofa Natural Spices, Lynx Entertainment, Pinkberry Ghana, and Burger King franchises. These portfolio companies collectively employ thousands of Ghanaians and have redefined their respective sectors.
Lamptey emphasized that Quick Angels offers more than money. Partnership includes governance frameworks, mentoring, and operational discipline to help businesses not just rise but endure. This hands-on approach distinguishes the fund from traditional lending institutions that typically demand collateral young entrepreneurs can’t provide.
The philosophy underpinning the Scale-Up Fund challenges conventional Ghanaian business thinking. Quaye pointed to global examples where successful entrepreneurs own relatively small stakes in their companies yet achieve billionaire status. Elon Musk owns approximately 13 percent of Tesla, Jeff Bezos holds about 10 percent of Amazon, and Bill Gates retains just 1 percent of Microsoft, yet their wealth remains substantial because they focused on building greatness rather than maintaining total control.
This shared ownership model, common in advanced economies, allows companies to raise significant capital through multiple investors’ contributions. When diverse individuals own stakes, they bring unique strengths and resources, making businesses more resilient against future challenges. The approach represents a cultural shift in Ghana, where business ownership traditionally concentrates in family hands.
Quick Angels, recognized as Ghana’s first institutionalized angel investor company, has invested over GHS 500 million across more than 30 Ghanaian-owned businesses since its founding. The portfolio demonstrates breadth, spanning quick-service restaurants, natural spices manufacturing, medical facilities, creative industries, telecommunications, and cosmetics.
The Scale-Up Fund application process remains open through the RNAQ Holdings website, with selected entrepreneurs receiving opportunities to pitch directly to investment decision-makers. The fund targets Ghanaian entrepreneurs between ages 20 and 45 who operate existing businesses ready for systematic growth.
Quaye’s vision extends beyond individual success stories to institutional systems that create an enduring pipeline of business growth. He argued that Ghana’s economic story won’t be written by speeches or promises but by partnerships formed, ideas backed, and businesses built with proper structure.
The initiative arrives as Ghana pursues economic transformation through private sector development. With traditional banking often inaccessible to growing businesses without substantial collateral, equity financing fills a critical gap in the capital ecosystem. Young entrepreneurs with viable businesses but insufficient assets now have alternative pathways to expansion capital.
Both speakers at the launch event stressed that funding alone won’t guarantee success. Entrepreneurs must demonstrate clarity about their numbers, business models, and missions. They should articulate not only what they’re building but what problems they’re solving and how their businesses can endure beyond the next 12 months.
The Scale-Up Fund represents RNAQ Holdings’ commitment to removing individuals from company structures and replacing them with systems that last. This philosophy extends Quaye’s broader vision of building wealth through sustainable structures rather than personality-driven enterprises.
As Ghana navigates economic challenges, private equity initiatives like the Scale-Up Fund offer hope that local businesses can scale sustainably, create employment, and compete regionally and globally. The question now shifts from whether capital exists to support growing businesses to which entrepreneurs will demonstrate the discipline, structure, and vision to attract and effectively deploy that capital.