Finclusive

We share an inspiring conversation with Carmelle Cadet, Founder and CEO of EMTECH, a Fintech company on a mission to create financial inclusion for all, especially those who are underbanked, unbanked and deemed "unbankable." She shares her personal story of growing up in Haiti, gaining access to financial services when her family moved to the US, and going on to have a 10-year career at IBM working in blockchain technology. She describes her lightbulb moment of deciding to quit her 6-figure salary job to work on an issue that was deeply personal to her. Carmelle walks us through the grueling process of raising her first million, pitching to central banks and investors such as a16z, and all the lessons she's learned along the way. 

A conversation with Manan Mehta, Founding Partner at Unshackled Ventures. Unshackled Ventures was founded in 2014 with the mission to help immigrant founders succeed. The firm invests in immigrant entrepreneurs at the ideation stage (60% of commits made before incorporation), sponsors visas, and provides full immigration support for immigrant founders who often do not have the support network of native-born founders. Unshackled has made 55 investments to date, backing founders from 6 different continents. Manan shares his experience building a company with an immigrant founder and learning the pain points of visa issues facing immigrant entrepreneurs. He highlights that the main challenge facing immigrant founders is not what they know, but who they know. Manan discusses how Unshackled has found its niche market in the VC space through its expansive access to a fast-growing network of immigrant entrepreneurs.


Arlan Hamilton is an investor and the founder and managing partner of Backstage Capital. She's also one of our advisors at Finclusive Ventures!

In May 2020, Hamilton released her first book from Penguin Random House entitled "It's About Damn Time", which is based on her personal journey into entrepreneurship and venture capital. 

Listen to our interview with Arlan Hamilton by Lauren Nham and Kelly Lei on how Arlan spot founders and people that she would want to work with. 

Arlan Hamilton is the Founder and Managing Partner of Backstage Capital, a venture capital firm dedicated to minimizing funding disparities in tech by investing in high-potential founders who are people of color, women, and/or LGBT. Started from scratch in 2015, Backstage has now raised more than $15 million and invested in more than 175 startup companies led by underestimated founders. In 2018, they launched a four-city accelerator program in Los Angeles, Detroit, Philadelphia, and London. Arlan has been featured on the cover of Fast Company magazine as the first Black woman non-celebrity to do so, and is the author of “It’s About Damn Time” and host of the weekly podcast “Your First Million”. Arlan and her mother, Mrs. Earline Butler-Sims, announced their scholarship program which kicked-off with scholarships for Black students at Oxford University and HBCU Dillard University.

Founder and investor Elizabeth Yin shares how Hustle Fund is democratizing wealth through entrepreneurship. Elizabeth shares strategies behind how Hustle Fund is able to write the earliest checks for new startups based on thoughtful evaluations of the founding team and the existence of “market pull.” For new VC firms, Elizabeth offers advice on portfolio construction. She highlights the importance of building a unique brand and leveraging other investors in the ecosystem. Through Hustle Fund and her personal investments, Elizabeth hopes to generate a vibrant startup ecosystem by creating more programs and funds for founders, as well as opportunities for new funders.

Ali and Kelly founded Finclusive Ventures and we are here to tell you why we are doing the Finclusive podcast.