Marie Nielsen

Marie Nielsen is a Partner at Antler Africa based in Nairobi, Kenya, where she directs early-stage venture capital investments across the continent. Prior to her current investment role, she spent several years working as an Associate Principal at McKinsey & Company, advising corporate clients on strategic management and operational initiatives. Alongside her corporate advisory background, she possesses direct operational experience as a startup founder in emerging markets, having built a commercial paper recycling enterprise located in Ethiopia. Nielsen successfully scaled and exited this recycling company in 2021 before shifting her professional trajectory toward institutional venture capital. She completed her higher education in Scandinavia, earning a master's degree in economic analysis from the Norwegian School of Economics. Her current focus combines her strategic consulting background and entrepreneurial experience to back early-stage founders building scalable businesses in Africa.