JOHANNESBURG, April 8 (Reuters) - Global supermarket

chains including Tesco ( TSCDF ), Australia's Woolworths Group ( WOLWF )

and Africa's biggest grocery retailer Shoprite

have teamed up to launch a $125 million venture capital fund to

accelerate retail innovation.

The new fund, W23 Global, will invest over five years in

start-ups and scale-ups deploying technology to benefit

consumers "by driving faster, more personalised and connected

experiences across stores and online", the retailers said in a

statement on Monday.

That will include investments in start-ups deploying

technology to overhaul the grocery value chain and address

sustainability in the sector.

Each retailer, including Ahold Delhaize and Empire

Company ( EMLAF ), is an equal funder and partner in W23 Global,

and their CEOs will sit on the investment committee, they said.

"At a time when innovation is reshaping retail and value

chains across the economy, we aim to offer our investors

incomparable access to transformative innovation in grocery and

sustainability across the globe," W23 Global CEO and Chief

Investment Officer Ingrid Maes said.

(Reporting by Nqobile Dludla)