In episode 6, we sit down with Gbenga Ajayi, Partner at QED Investors, to explore the evolving landscape of fintech in Africa. Gbenga shares his journey from tech industry roles to venture capital, offering valuable insights into the unique challenges and opportunities in the African fintech sector. He discusses the critical importance of trust in financial services and how innovative fintech solutions are reshaping consumer expectations across the continent. Gbenga also delves into the complexi...
Oct 14, 2024•30 min•Season 3Ep. 6
In this episode of 'Built Tough - Season 3', we have the pleasure of conversing with Iyinoluwa Aboyeji (E), Founding Partner of Future Africa, one of Africa's most innovative investment funds. Iyinoluwa brings a wealth of experience as a serial entrepreneur, having co-founded two of Africa's first startup unicorns: Flutterwave and Andela. His journey from founder to investor has given him unique insights into the African tech ecosystem, which he now leverages at Future Africa to support the cont...
Oct 07, 2024•26 min•Season 3Ep. 5
In episode 4 of "Built Tough", we sit down with Sam Senbanjo, Partner at A.P. Moller Capital, to explore the evolving landscape of infrastructure investment in Africa. With over two decades of experience in private equity and infrastructure development, Sam delves into the importance of technological innovation, pan-African expansion, and strong governance practices for companies seeking investment. He also discusses the shifting dynamics of fundraising in the current economic climate and offers...
Sep 30, 2024•40 min•Season 3Ep. 4
In the 3rd episode of "Built Tough", we have the privilege of speaking with Steve Beck, Managing Partner at Novastar Ventures. With over two decades of experience advising Fortune 200 companies and a deep-rooted passion for Africa's potential, Steve shares valuable insights into the evolving venture capital landscape on the continent. He discusses the challenges and opportunities facing entrepreneurs in Africa, drawing from his extensive experience investing in African start-ups since 2009. Stev...
Sep 23, 2024•35 min•Season 3Ep. 3
In the second episode of 'Built Tough’, we sit down with Maurizio Caio, Founder and Managing Partner at TLcom Capital. With a strong background in strategy consulting and over two decades of experience in venture capital, Maurizio has played a pivotal role in shaping TLcom's journey from investing in Europe and Israel to becoming a key player in early-stage investments across Africa. Maurizio offers a wealth of insights on the African tech ecosystem including the unique landscape facing African ...
Sep 16, 2024•42 min•Season 3Ep. 2
Natalie Kolbe, Managing Partner at Norrsken22, brings a wealth of experience to the African tech investment landscape. With 18 years at Actis, one of the leading private equity firms focused on emerging markets, Natalie managed 8 funds with an estimated USD $2.5 billion in assets under her supervision. Now at Norrsken22, a tech growth fund backed by an international network of tech founders, she partners with exceptional entrepreneurs to scale disruptive businesses across Africa. In this first e...
Sep 09, 2024•31 min•Season 3Ep. 1
CEO and founder of DAI Magister, Victor Basta shares insights gleaned from years of working across the African tech landscape. Drawing from experiences helping African companies raise nearly a billion dollars in capital, Victor offers a unique perspective on the continent's tech ecosystem. The episode explores the persistent generational opportunities in Africa, highlighting the vast 'white space' available for building continental leaders. Victor discusses the challenges facing the ecosystem, i...
Aug 29, 2024•30 min
Born in Germany to a Nigerian father and German mother, Laurin began his entrepreneurial journey in 2015 by launching a food delivery company in Sweden. He then founded Le Studio VC, a Paris-based startup studio and €15 million fund he ran as CEO. Laurin realized that investing was not for him, and in 2017, he launched his next venture: FairMoney. Laurin witnessed the rise of neobanks like Revolut and N26 across Europe and recognized the urgent need for a similar solution in Nigeria where more t...
Sep 25, 2023•31 min•Season 2Ep. 5
Daniel Yu describes himself first as an international curiosity seeker, and second, as a software developer. Raised in a multicultural household in the US, Daniel dropped out of university to travel and study languages. In 2013, he was studying Arabic in Egypt when he noticed pervasive stock outs at the neighborhood retail shops. He co-founded Sokowatch (as Wasoko was called then) to solve the many problems facing informal mom and pop shops which sell $700 billion of fast-moving consumer goods a...
Aug 07, 2023•29 min•Season 2Ep. 7
After completing his MBA program, Joseph (Joe) Rehmann got to work on a three-month aquaculture project in Ghana. Little did he know, he would become the CFO of the Accra-based Tropo Farms, a tilapia farm, for three years. While in Ghana, Joe learned invaluable lessons on scaling an aquaculture business, and for his next venture, he sought to create an end-to-end ‘protein plant’, a sustainable source of affordable fish protein for millions of Africans. In 2015, Joe and his co-founder launched Vi...
Aug 07, 2023•29 min•Season 2Ep. 6
In 2017, Miishe Addy moved to Accra, Ghana to teach at a technology incubator. She also pursued a side hustle exporting coconut oil and byproducts. Miishe wanted to ship her products to Lagos, Nigeria, but she abandoned her plans after running into logistical challenges. Facing the complexity and fragmentation of African supply chains, Miishe sought the guidance of an advisor, Solomon Torgbor, who worked for Maersk. They found that the supply chain problem was not unique to her venture but affec...
Aug 07, 2023•35 min•Season 2Ep. 4
Yemi Lalude’s journey is driven by his two greatest passions: Africa and technology. It is no exaggeration to say that Yemi is an early mover in African tech. In 2008, he founded Adlevo Capital, the first private equity firm investing in African tech companies. Under Yemi's guidance, the firm made early bets on (now) household names, like Interswitch and Paga. After Adlevo, Yemi joined TPG as Partner & Head of Africa. TPG is one of the world’s largest PE firms with $135BN assets under manage...
Aug 07, 2023•34 min•Season 2Ep. 3
Mark Straub kicked off his tech career in venture capital. During his 10+ years at Khosla Impact, Mark led investments in startups that would become leading names in the African tech ecosystem, such as Flutterwave, Branch, and Kopo Kopo. As he shuttled between Mumbai and Nairobi, he started to learn the immense problem of identity verification in emerging markets. Globally, an estimated one billion people lack proof of identity — 50% of whom live in Sub-Saharan Africa. In India, Mark witnessed t...
Aug 07, 2023•27 min•Season 2Ep. 2
Originally from Canada, Jesse Moore knew early on that he wanted to spend his life building a business that had a radically positive impact on underbanked customers in East Africa. In 2011, he moved to Nairobi, Kenya to launch M-KOPA, a connected asset financing platform that pioneered the pay-as-you-go (PAYG) model in Africa. With more than 12 years at the helm of M-KOPA, Jesse has led the company through major milestones, including raising more than $500M in investment. In this episode, Jesse ...
Aug 07, 2023•27 min•Season 2Ep. 1
In 2014, he co-founded Metro Africa Xpress, or MAX , alongside Chinedu Azodoh, to offer mobility services to disrupt Africa’s largely informal $100B transportation industry. Tayo credits the growth of e-commerce in Africa in the 2010s for the birth of MAX: “If these e-commerce companies are growing very quickly on the continent, they're going to need very robust last mile fulfillment infrastructure in place, and that's where the MAX idea was born.” A MIT Fellow, Bamiduro has been awarded the Ali...
Sep 16, 2022•31 min•Ep. 7
“We’ve probably lent more money than any startup in Africa. I don't think there's any lending company in Africa that is bigger than us in terms of what we do. And we do it with almost the most difficult people—drivers—on a day-to-day basis. ” Obi Ozor, Kobo360 CEO and Co-Founder. The last of eight children, Obi was studying to become a Catholic priest in Nigeria when a protracted kidney disease cut short his priestly ambitions. After working in finance and for Uber Nigeria, Obi launched Kobo360 ...
Sep 16, 2022•30 min•Ep. 3
“If you are running an asset-light business, you're running an asset-light business on top of lack of infrastructure. And then what ends up happening is that there will be no efficiency. And when there is no efficiency, you will end up just plowing through a pile of capital and end up with a business that's really not sustainable,” Peter Njonjo Twiga Foods CEO and Co-Founder. In 2019, after 18 years, Peter left his high-powered job at Coca-Cola, where he led operations in 33 African countries, t...
Sep 13, 2022•26 min•Ep. 6
“There's a general kind of acknowledgment that there is an excellent layer of female operators in Africa in general. But it's really interesting when it then comes to allocating capital as investors, for whatever reason, we don't translate that operational capacity, that managerial excellence, into effectively trust around ownership.” Eloho Omame, FirstCheck Africa Partner and Co-Founder. Eloho Omame is an early-stage investor and a strong advocate for gender and inclusion in VC in Africa. She's...
Sep 13, 2022•29 min•Ep. 5
“We interviewed patients across Ghana and we asked them, ‘Between a pharmacy, a doctor clinic, and a traditional healer, who do you visit most often? And 55% of people picked a pharmacy.” Greg Rockson, mPharma CEO and Co-Founder. Greg Rockson once arranged face-to-face meetings between top Israeli and Palestinian diplomats, created a mentorship program for refugee children from the Middle East and Somalia, and interned for Keith Wright, a former member of the New York State Assembly. These days ...
Sep 13, 2022•35 min•Ep. 4
“I feel that fintech [companies] take a view that they're competing with the banking industry. We are of the view that we are partners to the banking industry. There are certain values or benefits that the banking system creates and there are certain advantages that we as an innovative fintech business bring to the table. You combine these two things and it's a very powerful customer and customer proposition." Akshay Grover, Cellulant CEO. In 2021, Ken Njoroge, CEO and Co-Founder of Cellulant, a...
Sep 13, 2022•31 min•Ep. 2
"When we talk about mobile money, everybody thinks about the mobile technology and the user interface and how cool this is. Whereas the bedrock of it, the unsung heroes of mobile money, the giants on whose shoulders we are standing, are those agents across the continent," Dare Okoudjou, MFS AFrica CEO and Founder. That was Dare’s response when we asked him about the biggest myth about mobile money, the payments system that Africa pioneered. As much as Dare is a techie, he cares more about people...
Aug 25, 2022•34 min•Ep. 1
