Zach Bijesse

Our BankTech Ventures ecosystem at work! Kaitlyn Shevlin getting perspective from a bank-enabling company, ZSuite Tech, a partner, Ncontracts, and our banks on how they do 3rd party risk management and vendor due diligence better with tech companies and service providers. I love these productive conversations with multiple perspectives. So many insights and actionable suggestions. And it’s so cool to see my teammate organizing and leading this discussion! #banktechsummit #makingbanksbetter

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It is amazing at all the resources and opportunities that are wanting to pour into some of the African Regions. Mark Kleyner give us an overview and insights that you won't be able to find anywhere else in this week's episode of The Silicon Valley Podcast #africa #entreprenuers #business

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As we give up 2024, instead of doing more of the same and staying on a path that reserves the word “innovator” for people of a certain complexion, let’s build 2025 with intention. Irrespective of all other distractions we will hear on the news, we can change the future by making pre-seed investments in 2025 in Black founders in addition to founders from other underrepresented demographic groups. Why is race involved? Because the data shows that there is a color line delineating clearly where brilliance and the boldness to found a high-growth business has been least acknowledged and supported and nearly by an order of magnitude. If you have ever considered angel investing and you agree that the distribution of opportunity represented by the numbers below is intolerable, let’s talk.

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Recent data provided by Carta on pre-seed funding allocation for Black/African founders is deeply troubling. Black/African founders received just 0.4% of total pre-seed funding in 2024—a figure that has consistently declined over the past three years. Compare this to even East Asian and South Asian founders, who received 26% and 27.6%, respectively. The disparity is clear and undeniable. This reflects systemic inequities that continue to marginalize Black founders in the entrepreneurial ecosystem. Lack of funding means missed opportunities for innovation, economic growth, and community development. It means untapped potential and ideas that never make it to market. This is quite challenging, as great ideas come from everywhere, yet the current funding practices exclude entire groups from realizing their potential. Numerous studies have shown that diverse teams and leadership outperform their counterparts. By underfunding Black founders, we are leaving significant value on the table. It’s time to address this imbalance. Equity in funding isn’t charity—it’s smart business, it’s moral leadership, and it’s the right thing to do. Let’s ensure that the next wave of game-changing ideas comes from all communities, not just a privileged few. How can we really work together to ensure a fairer distribution of funding across the entrepreneurial landscape? #VentureCapital #StartupFunding #DiversityInTech #BlackFounders

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Thanks Chinenye. I couldn't agree with you more. However while we work on this, we also have to be mindful of the fact that bias isn't just the problem in this data rather a combination of poor economy and bias. Of all these regions mentioned, Africa is the least performing market. therefore Davidson, naturally you would expect investors to do less there. They are not charity organisations but a venture set up for outsized returns.Therefore the major issue we should be discussing is, which sectors are receiving this funding in Africa? Are the investments coming to sectors that will lift the other sectors up fundamentally or to sectors that will window dress the issues? or Worst still the ones that will reap-off on the people and distort rather than disrupt the system. (eg Nigeria POS fintech and the real banking system. a discussion for another day). Until strong investments are made in the technology sectors powering manufacturing strong job growth in Africa be it REAL B2B eCommerce not repeating what is already being done, or B2C eCommerce that is truly efficient and cost effective. Equally important is the improvement in the purchasing power of the consumers via credit card system. in as much as Sub-Sahara Africa lacks good credit system that captures the average citizens and residents, B2C will continue to struggle. in as much as our logistics investments are predominantly in the last mile delivery rather than efficient crosborder logistics, both B2B abd B2C eCommerce will struggle to scale efficiently and profitability. So, it's time for the investors to do away with the low hanging fruits and start tackling the real issues that will empower and propel Africa economies. That's where the main bias lies.

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Who gets the money, not black people, not Indigenous, not women, not anyone at the edges or left out of building the economy and finance as usual. The money, the vast thick majority, floods to the same dudes at the center; trust funded, family backed, familiar to the money and wielding the same extractive noises and bluster. Then there is the genius of 10,000 years, the creative, innovative, resilient, artists who have had to stay alive despite every blow and extraction. These spaces are rich in culture, rich in creatives, loaded in new ways, old ways and integrated ways to transform. These are the people and places where money must flow, from hearts that must open, to transformations that can heal, well, everything. #extraction #dudes #broculture #money #investing and #exhaustionoftheedges #edges #edgefinance #innovationforreal #creativityfordecades #transformationliveshere

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LAUNCHING A VC FIRM AS AN UNDERREPRESENTED MANAGER: COURAGEOUS, CRAZY, OR BOTH? 🤔 I read that only 2%-3% of all VC funds are led by Black General Partners (GPs). Maybe that’s why people keep calling me courageous for launching a VC firm as a new Black fund manager. Truthfully though, my whole life feels like one big exercise in doing the hardest $h!t imaginable. But here’s the thing: If you want to make a real dent in the universe, you can’t expect the path to be easy, right? For me, launching Kabila Ventures isn’t just about building a firm—it’s about leveling the playing field for overlooked founder teams worldwide. 🌎 It’s a calling, not a choice. So, to answer the question: Is it courageous? Maybe not. But I’ll admit... I’m definitely a little crazy. Here’s to the crazy ones—the ones who dare to do what others won’t. 🙌🏾 If you’re bold (or crazy) enough to consider launching your own VC firm as an underrepresented manager, check out my video for three tips to help you get started. Let’s build something that matters. 💪🏾 Together. Tally ho! 🤠 #VentureCapital #Entrepreneurship #DiversityInVC #VCtips #VC

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✨ Breaking: BFM Fund Announces New Fund.- BFM Fund A seed-stage fund focusing on founders who are Black, Indigenous, and people of color, promoting diversity in venture capital. https://www.bfm.fund Please share to let other #Founders know For the ❤️ of Startups #Fusion42 #Startups#Venturecapital

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This is so disheartening! However, in addition to addressing this challenge, we need to find innovative ways to mobilize domestic capital and diaspora investments. The biggest challenge is “trust”, alot of our people work in silos with an individualistic mindset. We should learn from other races how to collaborate for greater impact! Ecosystems develop based trust! For instance, the Angel Investors and Venture Capitalists in Sillicone valley are within a tight network. And its trust that enables founders to tap into these networks/relationships to raise preseed, seed capital, and later funding rounds. Even in Nigeria the Igbo entrepreneurship and trans-generational wealth creation model is based on trust.

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1% and 2% of VC funding go to Black and Women founders. Since money is hard to come by, we try to make it last by doing things ourselves. A word of advice: spend the money. We tried to do everything ourselves in the early days of working on Chezie. - I learned Webflow and Bubble to build our landing page and product and avoid hiring developers. - We spent hours onboarding every customer instead of buying a product to automate the process. - We constantly updated our email subscriber count so we didn’t have to upgrade to the next plan for an extra $30/month. I thought I was being scrappy, but I was actually holding the company back because it distracted me from higher-priority tasks. If you’re struggling to think about what to do yourself and what to spend money on, here’s a simple framework to help you decide: Put a price tag on your time. Early on, set your time at $50 or $100 an hour. If the time a tool or service saves you is more than that hourly rate, spend the money. As your company grows and your responsibilities pile up, the value of your time will rise, too. It might be $250/hour when you have ten employees and $1M in revenue, then $1000/hour at 25 employees and $3-5M in revenue. This isn’t about being reckless with your spending. It’s about freeing yourself to focus on the things that only you, as the founder, can do. Don’t let a $20 decision hold you back when it could be the key to moving faster and growing smarter. If it saves you time and mental energy, spend the money.

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Excited to join Blackout Tuesday # 18 at LocalGlobe this coming Tuesday centered around the theme: 'Increasing Venture-backed Black Founders: Journey from Seed to Series A and Beyond'. This event will focus on the challenges Black founders face when scaling startups and provide insights on navigating growth stages from Pre-seed to Series A. After a panel of founders sharing their experiences, the breakout session will dive into practical strategies for scaling. ✏ Register here: https://lnkd.in/eHZpMDN2 Launched in 2020, Blackout Tuesday aims to: 1. Increase Black representation in VCs 2. Boost venture funding for Black founders 3. Elevate Black employees in venture-backed companies 4. Support Black GPs 5. Increase Black or Black-aligned LP representation Balderton Capital Phoenix Court Blackout Tuesday

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Why Co-Founder Relationships Are Like Marriages… Let Me Explain 👇🏽 When Olumide Soyombo co-founded Bluechip Technologies with Kazeem Tewogbade, he learned something fundamental: the bond they shared as co-founders wasn’t just about building a business—it was more like a marriage. "Choosing a co-founder is like choosing a life partner," Olumide shared. "Working and understanding someone for some time, the same way you date, is very, very important in finding a cofounder.." This 'co-founder marriage' concept has been a guiding principle for Olumide throughout his entrepreneurial journey. Today, as an investor and advisor, it’s a perspective that shapes how he evaluates startups. He firmly believes that the strength of the co-founder relationship can make or break a company's success. How I Apply This Framework in My Investment Consulting ⬇️ When I evaluate startups, I certainly consider the product and market opportunity, but what truly stands out to me is the co-founder dynamic. - How do they collaborate? - How do they handle conflict? - Are their skills complementary? - Most importantly, do they share a long-term vision? Just like a strong marriage, a successful co-founder relationship is built on trust, open communication, and shared commitment. Without that solid foundation, even the most promising ideas can crumble under pressure. How This Can Help You: By focusing on the co-founder relationship, you can uncover hidden strengths—or potential weaknesses—within a startup team. It’s a powerful way to navigate the entrepreneurial landscape with greater confidence. This insight was inspired by Olumide Soyombo's episode on My Innovation Story podcast. Trust me, this episode is a must-listen for anyone serious about entrepreneurship and investing! 👉 What has your experience been with co-founders? Share your thoughts in the comments below! Link to the full episode in the comments section. #MyInnovationStory #Entrepreneurship #CoFounderRelationships #StartupInvesting #Leadership #Tech

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Having done YCombinator after over ten years of startup experience, it was like going back to school to learn about something I love and plan to continue doing as long as I live. Here is what I agree and disagree with. YC is great at creating a sense of urgency. I am a big believer that growth happens when you are outside of your comfort zone, not when you are comfortable. YC does a great job of creating that urgency. In fact, even after the batch, a few of us in the batch have continued the biweekly office hours tradition where we get together every couple of weeks and review our progress and goals. In reality, it turns into a biweekly "founder therapy" session. The other thing that YC is great about is the emphasis on being lean and scrappy. At the end of the day you want to build a company where $1 becomes $10, not the other way around. So you have to pay attention to cost, doing more with less. YC emphasizes scrappiness as a fundamental principle, and how it applies not just in the early stages but even as companies scale. You're not going to turn $1 into $10 if you don't care about ROI, and you won't get ROI if you only focus on output, not input. Having experience with both bootstrapping and venture, profitable and unprofitable, I wholeheartedly agree with this. YC also emphasizes raising as little possible, not as much as possible. As a YC company we get a lot of investor inbounds. This year alone I've easily received 200+ investors inbound all the way from $XXB funds to micro VCs and angels. At this point they start to feel like AI SDRs reaching out so I ignore most of them. I bet a lot of them made funny faces when we asked them what's the smallest check they're willing to write. The reason is, if you want to go work for a VC firm, go get a job at a VC firm, and enjoy the ski trips and summer vacations in France. The last thing you want to do is spend ten years of your life building something and end up working for a board / investors. The best way to avoid that is to not need them in the first place. Another thing I love about YC is the focus on technical founders. It's amazing what a couple of people can build in such a short period of time. The amount of constant experimentation and innovation that happens every week in YC makes it more interesting than most research labs. If you like building and tinkering, YC is the place for you. So what do I not agree with? One thing YC can do a better job of is focus more on people, culture and leadership. That is an important part of building a company. Sure, getting to PMF is the most important thing in the early days, but without valuing people, culture and leadership, you're not going to build a great company. IMO this is something that is underemphasized during the batch. There is only so much a founder can do alone. Ultimately you need to build a great team, attract great talent, and for the right reasons (passion, purpose, love of the craft), not the wrong reasons (love of money).

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Zimi (YC S24)), a startup simplifying cross-border commerce for international merchants, has raised $2 million in seed funding led by Fearless Fund, with participation from Y Combinator and other investors. Co-founded by Audrey Djiya and Peter Nsaka, Zimi’s platform tackles challenges like shipping, compliance, and payments to streamline global trade.

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Despite facing a challenging year for fundraising, Nigerian startups have showcased incredible resilience and innovation, raising a staggering $1.86 billion in 2024! This impressive total includes $1.2 billion in equity, $635 million in debt, and $33 million in grants. From tech pioneers to financial disruptors, these startups are redefining the landscape and setting new benchmarks. As we celebrate these achievements, let's continue to support and champion the entrepreneurial spirit that drives progress and transformation in Nigeria. Here's to pushing boundaries, embracing innovation, and making waves on the global stage! Moreover, these funds are not just numbers; they represent opportunities for countless young innovators and entrepreneurs to turn their dreams into reality. The impact of this financial boost will ripple across sectors, creating jobs, driving technological advancements, and fostering a culture of creativity and ambition. Nigeria's startup ecosystem is not just surviving it's thriving and paving the way for a brighter future! Are you a startup looking to grow your business and make an impact? Join DTH Africa's startup incubator and accelerator program! Our program offers comprehensive support, mentorship, and resources to help you grow your business and achieve your goals. Register with us today and take the next step towards success! #DTH #DFCTechHub #Tech #IT #StartupNews #Startup #Startups #funding #investment #ai #recruitment #technology #business #startupfunding #africa #AfricanStartups #CorporateSuccess #Teamwork #startupincubator #funding #support #growth #seedfund #entrepreneurship #innovationeconomy #NigerianStartups #Innovation #Resilience #FundraisingSuccess #Entrepreneurship #Tech #Finance #Pioneers #Trailblazers

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If you're building a fintech startup, you likely know of this investor, but just in case... This week's findfunding.vc spotlight is on Neil Kapur from TTV Capital. He: 🛫 Is based in SF & Atlanta 💲 Has spent time at Google in consumer-facing payments & at two fintech startups  🏔️ Loves alpine mountaineering and has climbed Kilimanjaro, Denali, Rainier, and more!! Amongst founders, Neil and the team at TTV Capital , including Gardiner Garrard, Mark Johnson, Sean Banks, Lizzie Guynn, and Laney Lewis are known for saying “lift, not lean.” They believe that their job as investors is not to create work for founders, but instead ask the right questions and help navigate to the best outcomes. Knowing Neil well personally, he's not only my go-to person for anything related to fintech but I can also highly recommend having him on your cap table - he's the kind of human you want to have in your corner during both good times and bad. Make sure to: ✉️ Pitch him at [email protected] ➡️ Follow TTV Capital on LinkedIn For more, check out our funder spotlight card below along with TTV Capital's profile on findfunding.vc (link in comments).

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🚨 This is it – The Final Push! 🚨 We’re down to the wire, and your vote could be the one that helps Ferna Tech take the stage at SXSW London 2025! Our panel, “A $16M Blueprint: How Black Founders Can Raise Smart Capital, Drive Culture & Go from Founder to Funded,” is more than a conversation—it’s a movement. It’s about reshaping the narrative, opening doors, and creating actionable pathways for underrepresented founders to thrive. This is your chance to make a statement: → That representation matters → That excellence against all odds deserves a global stage → That community-driven progress is the future 🔗 Vote here: https://lnkd.in/dHQzFMav 👇🏽 How to vote: 📹 #fernatech #sxsw #voteferna #fernafounders #blacktech #founders #venturestudio #AfroTech #Community #innovation

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"When they litigate, we should not capitulate; we should fight back." The wise words of Stacey Abrams, political leader and #fintech entrepreneur. How will we do it? With our voices, communities, and DOLLARS. 💸 This TechCrunch headline exposes these “prominent” VCs for what they really are: They are unwilling to roll up their sleeves and WORK for an innovative and regulated system that works in the best interests of EVERYONE. What’s their “Why?” A fear of progress and the power it brings. Since women are making progress, even if small, defenders of the status quo will delegitimize, litigate against, and support a candidate who will legislate away DEI initiatives because they threaten the status quo. They have a reductive sense that if more of us have something, they have less. But as Abrams also teaches us, “Why would we abandon our principles because someone who doesn’t believe in those principles mocks them?” Fintech Is Femme is committed to: 1. Amplify Her Story: You can’t be what you can’t see, and we need more people to see and hear female stories in fintech, an industry that sits at the intersection of two of the most powerful business sectors on the planet.    2. Share Her Blueprint: After sharing her story, we break it down into actionable, bite-sized pieces, creating a roadmap for others to follow. 3. Build Her Community: We need a supportive network of women to sustain us through successes and failures (and ridiculous headlines like this!) Using our platform and these three core pillars to fund HER, over and over. In Sallie Krawcheck's wise words, the solution is to “get more money into the hands of women.” 👏 It’ll happen because WOMEN make it happen, per usual. Thank you, Samantha Katz, Cindy Gallop, and Erin Gallagher, for speaking up. When I first saw this headline, I felt alone, but seeing other women speak up inclined me to -- let’s do it #onrepeat 

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I am excited to announce an additional $8.5M investment into Bandana (Bandana.com), led by General Catalyst, with follow-on investments from Craft Ventures and Triple Impact Capital. The promise of America 🇺🇸 has always been one of opportunity. From the early settlers seeking new lives to immigrants arriving with dreams of a better future and the rise of millions out of poverty during the Industrial Revolution, America's history is rich with stories of hope and progress. The Civil Rights Movement further solidified this promise, ensuring that opportunities were available to all, regardless of race or background. However, today, many still find the path to prosperity challenging, with barriers of inequity and privilege seeming more formidable than ever. At Bandana, we believe that the American Dream — the idea that hard work leads to success — should be within everyone's reach. Our mission is to empower hourly and entry-level workers through transparency and trust, by building tools that improve their livelihoods. By leveling the playing field with transparent information and providing reliable support, we aim to help everyday Americans achieve their dreams and create brighter futures for themselves and their families. Since January 2024, we've helped over 150,000 New Yorkers find better jobs, proving that our efforts are just the beginning of what we can accomplish together. We will continue to accelerate our growth and support even more Americans. Our focus remains on building the best platform for finding better jobs with comprehensive benefits and maximum transparency while also expanding into New Jersey, the rest of New York, San Francisco, and Los Angeles. This is just the first step in our broader vision to improve livelihoods and reignite the belief in the American Dream. A special shout out to my co-founders Caleb Lee and Larry Z. and to our incredible team here Vicky Xu, Elana Shen, Yong Li (Emily) Dich, Paulo Makalinao, Adrian Abeijon, Brian Qian, and Rudy Ramnath. Thank you to the investors who have believed in us from day one and continue to double down, specifically Niko Bonatsos, Max Rimpel, Lainy Painter Singh, Bennett Thomas, and Justin Smithline. Read more - https://lnkd.in/e7n3pjnM Techcrunch - https://lnkd.in/engU9bTD For the People, Timothy Makalinao

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