Kaya Founders
About Kaya Founders
Kaya Founders is a venture capital firm based in the Philippines, so this page describes a firm and not a single angel investor. TechCrunch reported that it was founded in 2021 by former Zalora Philippines CEO Paulo Campos, Summit Media president Lisa Gokongwei-Cheng and Locad CEO Constantin Robertz. Later press releases describe the firm as led by Campos, Gokongwei-Cheng and Ray Alimurung, a former Lazada Philippines CEO.
Paulo Campos has said Kaya began investing in Q4 2021. The firm's stated aim is to back founders as early as Day 0, with strategic and operational support.
Kaya runs funds. Its second fund closed at US$25 million and has two parts: a Zero to One pre-seed fund and a One to Ten fund for seed to Series A. Investors in the fund include Pavilion Capital, Bracebridge Capital principals, Concentric Equity Partners, local family offices and AMTI as anchor investor. Kaya is also an official co-investor of the National Development Company's Start-up Venture Fund.
Press reports put its portfolio at over 40 startups. Kaya also runs the Kaya Angel Network, which gives individual angels access to Philippine deals.
Kaya took part in the US$4.5 million seed round for Kita, announced in August 2026. BoxGroup led the round, and Y Combinator, Golden Gate Ventures, BEENEXT and others also joined. Kita is a San Francisco-based AI credit assessment platform for lenders. Kaya has also made a follow-on investment in Sourcy, a B2B AI recommendation engine, according to a third-party profile. Public sources do not give Kaya's investment dates for most other companies.
Kaya describes itself as a thesis-led investor in digital transformation in the Philippines and Southeast Asia. Its funds cover pre-seed through Series A. Reported sectors include e-commerce, fintech, education and healthcare, with recent emphasis on financial inclusion and clean energy.
Kaya does not publish a check size on its LinkedIn page. The third-party profile Superscout lists roughly US$150,000 to US$500,000, which Kaya has not confirmed.
- Kita: AI credit assessment for lenders; participated in the US$4.5M seed round announced August 2026.
- Sourcy: B2B AI recommendation engine; Kaya made a follow-on investment, reported in early 2025.
- PayMongo: Philippine payments provider backed by Stripe.
- Etaily: e-commerce enabler.
- Locad: cloud logistics platform; raised a US$9M pre-Series B in November 2024.
- Netbank: banking-as-a-service provider; Series A led by BEENEXT.
- Datung, ProTech, LenderLink, SunFund: recent investments in financial access and clean energy.
- techcrunch.com/2023/06/13/kaya-founders
- rappler.com/bulletin-board/advisories/kaya-founders-raises-funds-back-
- theindependentinvestor.ph/kaya-founders-closes-25m-fund-to-support-fil
- esquiremag.ph/money/capital/kita-ai-credit-assessment-startup-seed-rou
- rappler.com/business/young-filipina-carmel-limcaoco-teaching-ai-loans-
- superscout.co/investor/kaya-founders
- linkedin.com/company/kaya-founders
- linkedin.com/in/paulo-campos-7030a660
Investing activity
Kaya Founders appears in 1 AI deal tracked by the Lounge deals desk. The rounds are mostly Seed, with a median round size of $5M. The most recent is Kita (Seed, $4.5M, Aug 2026).
Kaya Founders most often invests alongside BoxGroup, US News Digital Ventures, Tala and Apex Star Capital, and the companies they back on Lounge are mostly in AI.
Deals
Frequently asked questions about Kaya Founders
Is Kaya Founders an individual angel investor?
No. Kaya Founders is a Philippines-based venture capital firm. It was founded in 2021 by operators who are also angel investors, including Paulo Campos and Lisa Gokongwei-Cheng.
What stage does Kaya Founders invest in?
Its Zero to One fund backs pre-seed companies, sometimes before launch. Its One to Ten fund backs seed to Series A companies that have found product-market fit.
What is Kaya Founders' check size?
Kaya does not state a check size publicly. A third-party profile lists about US$150,000 to US$500,000, but that figure is unconfirmed.
Has Kaya Founders invested in AI startups?
Yes. Kaya joined Kita's US$4.5M seed round in August 2026. Kita builds AI credit assessment software for lenders. Kaya also made a follow-on investment in Sourcy, a B2B AI recommendation engine.
Does Kaya Founders invest outside the Philippines?
Yes. Its stated focus is the Philippines and Southeast Asia. It also backed Kita, which is based in San Francisco and serves lenders in the Philippines and other markets.
How can founders pitch Kaya Founders?
Public sources do not describe a formal pitch process. Founders can start from the firm's website, kayafounders.com, or its LinkedIn page.
Is Kaya Founders an angel investor?
Yes. Kaya Founders invests personally as an angel.
What AI companies has Kaya Founders invested in?
Kaya Founders's AI investments include Kita. The 1 round on Lounge are listed on this page with amounts, dates and co-investors.
What stage does Kaya Founders invest at?
In the rounds tracked on Lounge, Kaya Founders has invested at Seed, with a median round of $5M.
Who does Kaya Founders co-invest with?
Kaya Founders's most frequent co-investors on Lounge are BoxGroup (1 deal), US News Digital Ventures (1 deal), Tala (1 deal), Apex Star Capital (1 deal) and Genting Ventures (1 deal).