NDRC’s Post

In week 5, I shared how we couldn’t make the top 5 in the ALX GHANA ventures accelerator's first pitch competition. It was a tough moment for us, but as always, we kept pushing forward. WEEK 9 OF BUILDING A TRADETECH UNICORN FROM WEST AFRICA - A series Fast forward to today, I’m beyond excited to announce that 8th Wonder has been selected as one of the top 10 startups in the cohort to pitch at Demo Day as part of the Ghana SME and Startup Week 24''! It’s a huge milestone for us, and it’s amazing to see our hard work pay off. On the community side, our Refer and Earn Challenge has been on fire. Last week, we hit 165 sign-ups, marking a 211% increase compared to the previous week's 53 sign-ups. With a steady daily growth rate, we’re seeing real momentum build up. The top referrer was rewarded with $10 for leading the charge, and this week’s race has already started. Success doesn’t come without setbacks, but with persistence and grit, we’re making sure 8th Wonder stands out. Stay tuned—we’re just getting started! #8thWonder #TheWorldIsYours #TradeTechUnicorn #StartupJourney #Ghanasmeandstartupweek24 #DoHardThings #ReferralChallenge

At Baltic Ventures we are passionate about our belief that exceptional founders can come from anywhere, and be anyone. Which is why we are thrilled to be partnering with Britain's Got Startups. Britain's Got Startups are trying to achieve: ⚖️ More equitable distribution of fundraised capital between London and the regions 🚨 Showcase the most impressive startups and scaleups in each region 📈 Create investment and commercial opportunities for the pitching businesses Why should you apply? Britain's Got Startups… …brings investors based outside of each region to see the talent …have a proven application process, where the chosen businesses raised £2.5m+ in their 2023/24 process …saw founders invest in other founders at the last event series, commercial collaborations and plenty of publicity for the pitching businesses   So if you are a business based in the North or the Midlands, make sure to get your application to Britain's Got Startups in before the deadline of the 28th January, apply here: https://lnkd.in/e4b-vjYJ

Over the past 5 years, 26 visionary startups across Africa have successfully raised over $6.9 billion, contributing to nearly half of the $15 billion invested in the continent’s burgeoning tech scene. At Cach, we are committed to fueling this growth by connecting startups with investors who believe in their potential. Join us in shaping the future of African innovation. PB Africa: The Big Deal

A few months ago, we launched Organize 2.0 and it’s been helping growth focused founders in Africa’s startup ecosystem. So far, we've helped startups with; • Cleaner cap tables, fewer legal headaches. • Simplified fundraising with equity built to scale. And not just startups, but VCs too. • Deeper insights into portfolios. • Confidence in structures that grow with their investments. The early wins are clear. 👉 Discover Organize 2.0 https://raise.africa/

Startup Hungary is proud to support the launch of The EU Inc Petition, a new, pan-European startup entity for European startups! 🇪🇺 In an open letter, top European scaleups and VCs are asking for the creation of an EU Inc legal entity under the 28th regime, which would allow startups to follow one pan-European set of business rules that would apply across the bloc. Fragmented regulations across 27 countries are holding founders back. The EU-Inc aims to fix that by creating this unified system that makes it easier to raise money, operate across borders, and offer employee stock options. Early supporters include Patrick Collison (Stripe), Niklas Zennström (Atomico), Luciana Lixandru (Sequoia Capital), Matt Clifford (Entrepreneur First), Taavet Hinrikus (Wise), Martin Mignot (Index Ventures) and more. We’re currently hosting the petition launch with Andreas Klinger (pictured), alongside Allied For Startups, pushing forward the EU Inc initiative to bring real change for startups across Europe! ✍️ Sign the petition here: https://www.eu-inc.org/

ENTRIES ARE OPEN for the 2nd annual South African Startup Awards, recognising the leading early-stage tech startups from around SA pushing the boundaries in South Africa! 🚀 If you’re a startup founder, this is a great opportunity to get noticed. And if you’re interested in seeing where tech in South Africa is heading, join in as a public voter and help us highlight the talent shaping our future. I'm participating as one of the 25 judges, and based on the categories, we're in for a treat with the unprecedented insight into grassroots business in South Africa. I've copied some NB information below, including timeline, criteria and categories. Follow this link for the official website: Entries close at 8pm on Friday, 8/11/2024 Enter here: https://lnkd.in/dTTAnVik Timeline: 4 November: Entries open at 9am. 8 November: Entries close at 8pm. 11 November: Public voting opens at 9am. 15 November: Public voting closes at 8pm. 18 November: Category shortlists announced publicly. 19 November: Judges vote for winners per category. 26 November: Winners are announced live at the Awards. Criteria: - Entrants must be “technology” startups - i.e. building software, hardware, inventions, scientific innovation/R&D (e.g. biotech or deeptech), or leveraging technology to deliver their value proposition in a proprietary way. - Startups must be under 5 years old, from date of establishment to date of nomination.  - Startups must be South African - i.e. were founded and have a majority presence (office/team) in South Africa. Companies domiciled offshore (for the purpose of IP/Investment) or that have expanded to other markets are still eligible for nomination. - Startups must have a product/service that is active in the market. - Startups must be post-revenue (or achieving substantial user growth). - Startups must be pre-series A (i.e. have not yet raised a Series A capital round). Categories: - AI & Big Data - Biotech - Climate & Sustainability - Consumertech - Digital Commerce - Edtech - Fintech - Future of Work - Healthtech - Informal Market - Mobility & Logistics - People's Choice Looking forward to playing a part in this epic event and seeing the ideas and energy the founders bring! #SAStartupAwards #SouthAfricaTech #venturecapital #dommisseattorneys Daniel, Tetelo, Tshego, Andea, Adrian

The only people who ever thing this it ok? People who have written cheques at that level for that much ownership Here’s why it doesn’t work: Founder 1 (CEO): 25% Founder 2 (CTO): 25% “Angel Investor”: 50% Fast forward to the next round. Seed investor needs 20%, and a 15% employee stock option pool (ESOP) is added as well Post Seed Round Founder 1 (CEO): 16% Founder 2 (CTO): 16% “Angel Investor” : 33% Seed Investor : 20% Employee Stock: 15% (Number rounded to nearest % for simplicity) If you think a good investor is putting in $1-2M for 10-20% of a business with a cap table that looks like this, you are insane Post Series A the founders will own 12% each and, even if you include the employees, they aren’t in control of their business The “Angel Investors” are ruining their investments companies and opportunity to see any return I have spoken to 100s of investors over the last 7 years, 99% of them said no and turned us down It would of been 100% if our cap table looked like the above and Firstbase would have died

Applications for Antler - the world’s day zero investor - are now open! Join the 13th Australian residency spanning Sydney, Melbourne and, for the first time, Brisbane in February. Antler backs founders from day zero and for the life of their business as a long term investor and supporter. In just five years, the firm has expanded in 27 locations worldwide and invested in over 1,000 startups, making it the world’s most active early-stage VC. In Australia, the firm has also committed to guaranteed follow-on participation into the companies it invests in at the pre-seed stage if the founders can secure $300,000 from sophisticated investors within 12 months of Antler’s initial investment - a highly appealing and unique deal for founders in Australia. It comes as our member Antler announces the close of its second Australian Fund at an oversubscribed $77M, which will be used to invest in 100 early-stage startups in Australia. Whether you are an individual looking for a co-founder to launch your next startup or an early-stage team looking for VC funding and support, Antler and its global network can help you succeed. Apply now: https://lnkd.in/gNQcfq7s Got questions? Join their AMA next Wednesday or one of the upcoming ones here: https://lnkd.in/gAsj4wMu

🚀 Why should Londoners have it all? 🚀 It’s no secret that a disproportionate amount of investment goes to London-based companies compared to regional startups. But Baltic Ventures are out to fix that. We caught up with their CEO, Claire Lewis, to find out how Baltic’s not-for-profit accelerator is changing the game for founders in Liverpool. 🤫 Spoiler: their first cohort has already raised a whopping £7.5MN this year. Claire gave us the inside scoop on Baltic’s mission and how they’ve partnered with SeedLegals to: 💰 Help founders take quick, early investment 📃 Make sure their portfolio startups have solid legal foundations 🤯 Support new entrepreneurs through the complex world of fundraising Check out the full story here 👉 https://lnkd.in/eBNQwTKD If you’re looking to make angel investments or your funding rounds fast, simple and cost-effective… talk to us! https://lnkd.in/e9KTPqaD #Investor #Invest #Founder #Funding #fundraising

The 2024 Startup Muster is here! If you are running a startup in Australia, or supporting startups in Australia , please contribute your data below to the largest survey of Australia's startup ecosystem! https://lnkd.in/gxQYuhSi