FAQ

What kind of commercial businesses do you seed?
We try to focus on web portals, local social media ventures, pre-revenue mobile value added services and specialized e-retail solutions.
We are young programmers and we’ve been working on this killer app/site in our spare time for the last 6 months. We don’t have a business plan though. Will you deal with us?
There’s no need for you to send us a detailed business plan initially, but if you have one that’s great. Just send us a one page summary of your project, let us know how you intend to generate revenue or attract large numbers of loyal users, how much work you’ve done to date. Most importantly tell us as much as you can about yourselves and what skill sets, experience and qualifications you have.
We’d like to send you a design specification, business plan or other document about our project. You’re not going to steal our ideas, are you?
No. We respect your intellectual property and if your pitch involves disclosing new, innovative technology we will provide you with a non-disclosure agreement.
How much money can you give us and how much equity do you want?
All our investments are in pre-revenue companies. We are usually the first investor and we provide $ 5,000 – $ 25,000 per venture. Each case is unique, but typically, we take a 10%-30% stake, with or without options.
Do you invest in web design companies?
I’m afraid the answer is no, and neither do we invest in hosting ventures or Internet cafes.
We have a cash positive going concern. We’d like to expand and release new products. We need $ 200,000+. We have a solid business plan. Can you work with us?
We won’t invest in your company but we’d be happy to introduce you to individuals who might. We would also advise you to contact the following companies and organizations, who may be able to help you: GroFin, Bid Network, Open Capital Advisors, VC4Africa
I see you are also involved in social enterprise ventures? Tell me more please.
To date we have partnered with a London based society to launch a fundraising platform for African soccer teams, and with an Austrian NGO to fund an incubation program for young entrepreneurs in Zanzibar.

We’re happy to explore further social enterprise joint ventures, or other partnerships with individuals, NGOs and corporate entities. Feel free to get in touch, especially if your proposal focuses on ICT4D, entrepreneurship, security, education or community development.

I like what you are doing. I’ve been thinking about informal/commercial/social enterprise investments in Sub-Saharan Africa for a while, but I don’t know where to start. May I contact you for advice?
Yes, we’d love to hear from you. We can put you in touch with service providers, attorneys, consultants, etc. in many countries. We’re happy to share contacts and talk to you in more detail about our own experiences, good and bad. If you have a specific investment project in mind, we’d be happy to help you manage and/or monitor it.