Untapped Opportunities

We’re thrilled to kick off our new Twitter spaces series, where we’ll host engaging conversations about investing in entrepreneurship in emerging markets, especially Africa. Join us every Thursday on Twitter @UntappedGlobal at 9 am PDT/4 pm GMT/6 pm SAST.

In this episode, we spoke to some of Africa’s #Blockchain and #Crypto entrepreneurs leading the way on the fastest-growing continent on earth; Ahren Posthumus - CEO at Momint, Nelly Chatue Diop -  Co-Founder and CEO at Ejara and George Payne - Business Development at Carry1st. 

Untapped Global connects global investors to entrepreneurs in emerging markets by offering profitable, data-driven investment opportunities for global investors to finance high-growth businesses across Africa.

*Stay up to date with Untapped, subscribe to our newsletter -------> http://bit.ly/untappedupdates

We’re thrilled to kick off our new Twitter spaces series, where we’ll host engaging conversations about investing in entrepreneurship in emerging markets, especially Africa. Join us every Thursday on Twitter @UntappedGlobal at 9 am PDT/4 pm GMT/6 pm SAST.

In this episode, we spoke to some of Africa’s most prominent leaders in Web3 about the use cases, opportunities, and growth of Crypto across the continent; Gwera Kiwana - Crypto Founder in Residence at MFS Africa, Ken Kou - Web3 Lead at Mercy Corps Africa and Toffene Kama - Principal Investor at Mercy Corps Africa.

Untapped Global connects global investors to entrepreneurs in emerging markets by offering profitable, data-driven investment opportunities for global investors to finance high-growth businesses across Africa.

*Stay up to date with Untapped, subscribe to our newsletter -------> http://bit.ly/untappedupdates

Jim Chu, CEO and Founder at Untapped joined Toby Bromer, Editor at Gluwa to chat about investing in emerging markets (and why you should get in on it!), what open finance can do for real world assets, and how the Gluwa & Untapped partnership is set to change who invests and how they invest!

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Untapped Global is reshaping profitable investing in emerging markets through digitization and network effects. Based in San Francisco, Africa, and Europe with an all-female investment team, the company aims to empower the next billion entrepreneurs to scale to their full potential by connecting frontier market innovators to global investors online and in-person.   Find out more at untapped-global.com

Over the past ten months, Untapped Global has introduced an innovative investment model called Smart Asset Financing™ that provides flexible capital for fast-growing companies in emerging markets like Paga, Asaak, and FlexClub.   

For investors, Smart Asset Financing™ leverages IoT technology to make investments safer and more profitable by tracking assets and capturing revenue in real-time.We’ve proven that it works: we’ve financed hundreds of entrepreneurs in over half a dozen countries, and have become profitable in the 10 short months since we launched. So far, we’ve only been able to make this investment opportunity available to “accredited” (ie. wealthy) investors willing to write big checks. Now, we want to make the opportunity to profitably invest in emerging markets available to anyone, anywhere.

We are raising $1M on WeFunder to build an online platform that allows any type of investor – big or small – to invest in Smart Asset Financing™ for fast-growing small businesses in Africa, Latin American, and Asia.We’ll be hosting public Q&A sessions over the next several weeks to allow anyone, anywhere to speak directly to our CEO and Founder, Jim, and other members of our team to learn more about the Untapped movement.

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[00:07] -  Introduction: Meet the Untapped Global team

[11:18] - What is Untapped’s Investment model, and how do you manage the assets?

[16:20] - What is the relationship between the Untapped investment fund and investment platform?

[20:09] - To invest in Untapped Global’s crowdfund and investment platform, do you have to be a US-based accredited investor?

[23:01] - Who is the target market for the untapped investment platform?

[25:08] - Is the Smart Asset Financing model exclusive to emerging markets?

[32:46] - What is the potential exit criteria for Untapped equity investors?

[39:12] - How does Untapped source the startups you invest in?

[46:15] - What is untapped’s risk management strategy?

[53:25] - Can non-US- based investors invest in Untapped without going through the Crowdfund?

[56:28] - Do Untapped investors get to choose which businesses they invest in on the investment platform?

[1:03:52] - How does Untapped plan on motivating more women to invest?

[1:08:55] - Is Untapped crowdfunding at the same valuation as before the Reg-D raise?

[1:09:46] - How does Untapped plan on reaching the next generation of investors?

Register to Join the next Q/A session with the Untapped team LIVE on December 3rd at 8am PST/ 3pm GMT/ 7pm EAT!  

The unprecedented outbreak of COVID19 has accelerated remote working over the past two years, presenting a unique opportunity for companies to build diverse teams that combine global mindsets with on the ground presence in the most promising markets around the world!

We were joined by panelists Tobi Lafinhan Co-founder at Venture for Africa, Grace Njunge - Global Chief of Staff at Dalberg and Lundie Strom, Partnerships and Communications Lead at Untapped Global.

Subscribe to our newsletter to learn more about what our portfolio companies and global investor network are up to, updates from our team, upcoming events for The Nest network to join, and other thoughts about the interesting people, places, and things we come across: http://bit.ly/untapped-news

This month, we've introduced a new series, 'How Africa Built This' to our Clubhouse conversations! 'How Africa Built This' explores the stories behind some of the continent's groundbreaking innovators, entrepreneurs, and companies.

Untapped Global's goal is to connect international investors to high-growth frontier markets. We host The Nest investment network and have monthly discussions each first Thursday of the month on investing and entrepreneurship in emerging markets on Clubhouse.

Subscribe to our newsletter to learn more about what our portfolio companies and global investor network are up to, updates from our team, upcoming events for The Nest network to join, and other thoughts about the interesting people, places, and things we come across: http://bit.ly/untapped-news

Ugwem Eneyo CEO at SHYFT Power Solutions and Josh Whale CEO at Ampersand discuss their recent financing rounds, e-mobility in Africa and investing on the continent. 

Untapped Global's goal is to connect international investors with high growth frontier markets. We host The Nest investment network and have weekly discussions each Thursday on investing and entrepreneurship in frontier markets on Clubhouse, and in-person in cities around the world. We also host The Nest, a monthly in person and on-line pitch platform highlighting the most promising startups from emerging markets.

Visit our website to learn more about Untapped Global: https://untapped-global.com/

From misperceptions of risk in Africa to local investors undervaluing local startups, valuations in startups in Africa vary widely. Are they under valued or over valued? We discussed this topic with panelists;  Adenike Sherriff - Principal at Future Africa , Stephen Deng -Co-founder & Partner at DFS Lab, Laurent Lamothe -former Prime Minister of Haiti and Jim Chu- CEO at Untapped Global. 

Untapped Global's goal is to connect international investors with high growth frontier markets. We host The Nest investment network and have weekly discussions each Thursday on investing and entrepreneurship in frontier markets on Clubhouse, and in-person in cities around the world. We also host The Nest, a monthly in person and on-line pitch platform highlighting the most promising startups from emerging markets.

Visit our website to learn more about Untapped Global: https://untapped-global.com/

Over $2B in venture capital went to Africa in 2020, but the opportunity for financing goes well beyond VC. We will look at venture debt and the role it can play in scaling startups in Africa with key panelists Camila Nestor - CEO at MCE Social Capital, Kwami Williams - CEO and Co founder at MoringaConnect, and Rob Eloff - Co founder of Lateral Capital. 

Untapped Global's goal is to connect international investors with high growth frontier markets. We host The Nest investment network and have weekly discussions each Thursday on investing and entrepreneurship in frontier markets on Clubhouse, and in-person in cities around the world. We also host The Nest, a monthly in person and on-line pitch platform highlighting the most promising startups from emerging markets.

Visit our website to learn more about Untapped Global: https://untapped-global.com/

This week on Meet the Entrepreneur, our partners Invest Africa  spoke to Mohamed Abdou, founder of Pravica, the first blockchain email service provider in the MENA region. They discussed the disruptive potential of the technology to solve some of Africa's most pressing challenges including trust in institutions, financial inclusion and underreported data.

Mohamed Abou pitched Pravica on The Nest in March: To watch Mohamed's pitch click here.

Learn More about Pravica: https://pravica.io/

Learn More about Invest Africa: https://www.investafrica.com/

This year, Untapped Global has partnered with Invest Africa to boost investment in African startups through The Nest, a hybrid online and in-person monthly pitch series. Join us every month online and across the globe as we hear from Africa's high-impact and high-growth startups.

Register for the next pitch event on 22nd April: bit.ly/untappedthenest

Get in touch at [email protected] for more information about how you can get involved in pitching or investing through The Nest.