In this episode, we’re humbled to sit down with Badi Sudhakaran, the brilliant Co-Founder and CPO of Africa’s leading crypto exchange, VALR. 

Since its founding in 2018, VALR has grown to become the continent’s largest crypto exchange by trading volume, processing more than $10bn from more than 500K customers. 

The company has also successfully raised more than $55m from leading investors and is now eyeing a new wave of growth through its expansion to the Middle East.

We talk about: 

• Badi’s upbringing and early career
• Living and working across 3 continents
• Using technology to serve humanity
• The decision (and risks) of starting VALR
• Competing with a giant in the market
• The company’s exciting prospects

Connect with Badi on LinkedIn:
  / badisudhakaran

Connect with Mathew on LinkedIn:
  / mathewmarsden  

The Startup Club Podcast dives into the stories of South Africa's leading tech startup founders and investors, their journeys of innovation, failure, resilience, and triumph and is an initiative of Startup Club ZA - the country’s fastest-growing tech startup and investor community. If you're passionate about entrepreneurship, innovation, solving hard problems, backing the change-makers and co-creating a better country, then you're invited to join us! 🇿🇦

Connect with us:

Website - https://www.startupclubza.com
LinkedIn - https://za.linkedin.com/company/startup-club-za
Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/startupclub.za/

In this episode, we’re joined by Kimberley Taylor, Founder and CEO of LOOP, the trailblazing delivery management platform that’s empowering companies across the country to optimise and scale their logistics infrastructure.

What started as a third-year university project in 2015, Loop has since grown to raise meaningful investment, built a team of 21 employees and is supporting big-name clients like Nandos and OneCart, evening helping your Checkers' Sixty60 driver arrive at your door.

We talk about:

• Kim’s formative childhood
• Starting a company in university
• Raising capital and finding the first big client
• Perspective on being a female founder
• The ups (and downs) of scaling too fast
• The company’s exciting prospects

Connect with Kimberley on LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/kimberley-taylor-loop/

Connect with Mathew on LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/mathewmarsden/

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This episode was sponsored by FNB South Africa. 

The Startup Club Podcast dives into the stories of South Africa's leading tech startup founders and investors, their journeys of innovation, failure, resilience, and triumph and is an initiative of Startup Club ZA - the country’s fastest-growing tech startup and investor community. If you're passionate about entrepreneurship, innovation, solving hard problems, backing the change-makers and co-creating a better country, then you're invited to join us! 🇿🇦

Connect with us:

Website - https://www.startupclubza.com
LinkedIn - https://za.linkedin.com/company/startup-club-za
Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/startupclub.za/

In this episode, we’re joined by David Akinin, Founder and CEO of JABU, one of the continent’s leading B2B commerce startups, solving last-mile distribution, payments and supply chains for informal retailers in Africa.

Since its founding in 2020, JABU has expanded to multiple countries, grown a team of 70 and has raised more than $18m in capital.

We talk about:

David’s incredible life story

How he was accidentally hired at Google

His journey of navigating tough decisions

How and why he fell in love with Africa

Acting when opportunity calls

Important foundations on which to build a company

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Connect with David on LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidakinin/

Connect with Mathew on LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/mathewmarsden/

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This episode was sponsored by DISRUPT, a strategic marketing agency on a mission to build the biggest brands in the world and the team behind The Startup Club Podcast. 

The Startup Club Podcast dives into the stories of South Africa's leading tech startup founders and investors, their journeys of innovation, failure, resilience, and triumph and is an initiative of Startup Club ZA - the country’s fastest-growing tech startup and investor community. If you're passionate about entrepreneurship, innovation, solving hard problems, backing the change-makers and co-creating a better country, then you're invited to join us! 🇿🇦

Connect with us:

Website - https://www.startupclubza.com
LinkedIn - https://za.linkedin.com/company/startup-club-za
Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/startupclub.za/

In this episode, Mathew sits down with the formidable Thandeka Xaba, co-founder and Managing Partner at Digital Africa Ventures, one of South Africa’s first black, female-founded venture capital funds.

This episode dives into:

Thandeka’s upbringing

Navigating entrepreneurship

The power of networks

The realities of being a first-time fund manager

Her passion for supporting underrepresented founders to make an impact on the continent

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Connect with Thandeka on LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/thandeka-xaba-a02ab323/

Connect with Mathew on LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/mathewmarsden/

The Startup Club Podcast dives into the stories of South Africa's leading tech startup founders and investors, their journeys of innovation, failure, resilience, and triumph and is an initiative of Startup Club ZA - the country’s fastest-growing tech startup and investor community. If you're passionate about entrepreneurship, innovation, solving hard problems, backing the change-makers and co-creating a better country, then you're invited to join us! 🇿🇦

Connect with us:

Website - https://www.startupclubza.com
LinkedIn - https://za.linkedin.com/company/startup-club-za
Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/startupclub.za/

In this episode, Mathew sits down with Ndabenhle “Nda” Ngulube, co-founder of Pineapple, the South African insuretech fast becoming a household-name through its pioneering product and highly memorable nationwide billboards campaign. Pineapple has attracted millions of dollars in early-stage venture and grant capital from notable investors, on it’s mission to become the country’s leading full-suite, digital insurance pioneer. 

In this episode, we talk about:

Nda’s global upbringing

Discovering a love for code and pivoting careers

Founding a tech business with “strangers”

Lessons in go-to-market and pivoting

Disrupting one of the country’s most established industries

What the future holds for himself and the company

-

Connect with Nda on LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/ndabenhle-junior-ngulube-9a19a8146/

Connect with Mathew on LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/mathewmarsden/

The Startup Club Podcast dives into the stories of South Africa's leading tech startup founders and investors, their journeys of innovation, failure, resilience, and triumph and is an initiative of Startup Club ZA - the country’s fastest-growing tech startup and investor community. If you're passionate about entrepreneurship, innovation, solving hard problems, backing the change-makers and co-creating a better country, then you're invited to join us! 🇿🇦

Connect with us:

Website - https://www.startupclubza.com
LinkedIn - https://za.linkedin.com/company/startup-club-za
Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/startupclub.za/

In this episode, Mathew sits down with acclaimed venture capitalist, Clive Butkow - CEO and Founder of Kalon Venture Partners - to talk about his rise from modest beginnings to becoming COO of Accenture South Africa, before “retiring early” to spearhead one of the country’s most recognised VC firms.

Kalon successfully raised its first fund in 2014 and has since deployed over R250m as an early investor in the likes of Ozow, FCB.AI, Mobiz, Sendmarc and Talk360 (among others).

Clive now has ambitions to raise a $50m fund to fuel the firm’s Pan-African portfolio ambitions.

This episode dives into:

Clive’s upbringing and early career.

Becoming an investor after lengthy corporate career.

The realities of fundraising in today’s environment.

Key traits of highly successful founders.

What the future holds for himself and the company.

-

Connect with Clive on LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/clive-butkow-5b49144/

Connect with Mathew on LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/mathewmarsden/

-

This episode was sponsored by Guardrisk Launchpad, a brilliantly disruptive insuretech initiative created by the country leader in cell captive insurance.

The Startup Club Podcast dives into the stories of South Africa's leading tech startup founders and investors, their journeys of innovation, failure, resilience, and triumph and is an initiative of Startup Club ZA - the country’s fastest-growing tech startup and investor community. If you're passionate about entrepreneurship, innovation, solving hard problems, backing the change-makers and co-creating a better country, then you're invited to join us! 🇿🇦

Connect with us:

Website - https://www.startupclubza.com
LinkedIn - https://za.linkedin.com/company/startup-club-za
Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/startupclub.za/

In this episode, Mathew Marsden is joined by Donald Valoyi - the self-taught developer turned tech founder - who rose from humble beginnings to pioneer one of South Africa’s leading, on-demand delivery startups, Zulzi.

At the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, Zulzi was doing over ~2000 orders (R1m) per day and has raised 10’s of millions in capital since inception, most notably from the Shoprite Group. With a fresh focus and passionate team of over 100, Zulzi’s on a mission to revolutionise the last-mile delivery landscape in Africa.

This episode dives into:

Donald’s upbringing and early career.

Leaving corporate for a life of entrepreneurial problem-solving.

The realities of building a bootstrapped startup.

The value of the right people and partnerships.

Knowing when to double down and when to pivot.

What the future holds for himself and the company.

-

Connect with Donald
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/donald-vutlharhi-valoyi-0a38286/

Connect with Mathew
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mathewmarsden/

The Startup Club Podcast dives into the stories of South Africa's leading tech startup founders and investors, their journeys of innovation, failure, resilience, and triumph and is an initiative of Startup Club ZA - the country’s fastest-growing tech startup and investor community. If you're passionate about entrepreneurship, innovation, solving hard problems, backing the change-makers and co-creating a better country, then you're invited to join us! 🇿🇦

Connect with us:

Website - https://www.startupclubza.com
LinkedIn - https://za.linkedin.com/company/startup-club-za
Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/startupclub.za/

In this episode, Mathew Marsden is joined by Mitchan Adams - the music producer turned developer, instrumental in co-founding (and exiting) one of South Africa's leading fintech startups, Ozow.

By the time he left in 2021 - Ozow had raised a $48m Series B and was processing more than $100m/growing at 140K users per month.

This episode dives into:
 
Mitchan's early years and influential experiences that laid the groundwork for his entrepreneurial journey.
 
Turning points that shifted his focus from music to technology.
 
Strategies and the mindset that propelled Mitchan through countless financial and personal challenges.

Balancing co-founder dynamics and effective collaboration.
 
Knowing when, the process of, and life after exiting a startup.
 
The opportunity in South Africa and the role of Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment (B-BBEE).
 
A glimpse of Mitchan's vision for the future and what he’s working on now.
 
Dive into a world of innovation and audacious entrepreneurship alongside Mathew and Mitchan and absorb the lessons that come from embracing change and breaking barriers.
 
 Connect with Mitchan on LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/mitchanadams/

Connect with Mathew on LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/mathewmarsden/

The Startup Club Podcast dives into the stories of South Africa's leading tech startup founders and investors, their journeys of innovation, failure, resilience, and triumph and is an initiative of Startup Club ZA - the country’s fastest-growing tech startup and investor community. If you're passionate about entrepreneurship, innovation, solving hard problems, backing the change-makers and co-creating a better country, then you're invited to join us! 🇿🇦

Connect with us:

Website - https://www.startupclubza.com
LinkedIn - https://za.linkedin.com/company/startup-club-za
Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/startupclub.za/