Deep Dive Into Venture Capital Investing in Africa

Our guest is Mohamed Karar. He is a Venture Partner at Launch Africa, one of the most active early-stage venture capital firms in Africa.

Once Mohamed, talking to us from Cape Town, South Africa, learned what a venture capital partner does, he knew that was perfect for him. After meeting Zachariah George at Launch Africa, he was one of their very first hires.

Even without experience in finance before joining the firm, what made venture capital so appealing to Mohamed? It was his natural curiosity. And his ability to ‘live in the future’.

The Goldman Sach’s approach to hiring transfers extremely well to venture capital, and to startups in general. “They weren’t as concerned about your technical skills, but whether you are someone who can succeed in such an intense environment.”

On whether an early-stage VC is actually investing in the founders more than the concept, Mohamed points out that, “If you are making a startup, the odds are that you are not going to figure it out the first time. It is going to take some humbling along the process.”

Mohamed is a Venture Partner, which means that he is out there actively searching for the next homerun. Once he buys into the potential investment, it goes to the larger team and then to the all-important investment committee. Hear more details on that journey every founder wants to go on.

And where does a venture capital firm get its money? It depends. There are many potential sources for firms and Mohamed explains how Launch Africa is a bit different. You also can hear his interest in how sovereign wealth funds and even governments are becoming more active in all sectors.

The all-important question of what a venture capital firm is looking for in a potential investment is answered. At least for Launch Africa. Hear the checklist of questions in case you are a founder looking for an advantage.

Regulation has a huge impact on investing around the globe. And a founder who has that under control brings a tremendous advantage to the discussion.

At Launch Africa, they are building a community, a portfolio of companies that can help each other. Synergy is alive and well. Learn more about what the VC firm can bring to the founders beyond writing a check.

With the recent investment in media and esports, Launch Africa is looking to expand and diversify their portfolio with strategic opportunities.

Because of his experience across all of Africa, Mohamed talks about the challenges founders in emerging markets face. And the potential opportunities.

And find out what you will receive as a prize if you get to a deal with Mohammed when you mention the Gamers Change Lives Podcast.

Episode Webpage: https://www.gamerschangelivespodcast.com/deep-dive-into-venture-capital-investing-in-africa-with-mohamed-karar

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FEATURED IN THIS EPISDOE:

Mohamed Karar. He is a Venture Partner at Launch Africa.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mohamed-karar/

Launch Africa: https://www.launchafrica.vc/

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PRODUCTION:

Creator and host: Tom Leonard (USA) - https://www.linkedin.com/in/tomeleonard/

Producer: Reginald Nsowah (Ghana) - https://www.linkedin.com/in/reginald-nsowah-09352929/ 

ABOUT THE SHOW:

Play Games. Create Jobs. Change Lives.

This is a show about how to build an esports business from literally anywhere in the world where each week we showcase the journey of esports entrepreneurs and others to learn how they solved a particular problem that everyone will ultimately face.

In Season Two our theme is “Follow the Money”.

I am your host, Tom Leonard. I have a background in entertainment marketing. After working with many amazing esports entrepreneurs from emerging markets, they inspired me to create a show to tell their stories so that others can be motivated to create their own esports business. Gaming and esports can create jobs tackling the problem of global youth unemployment. Creating jobs from playing games. What could be better than that?

Thanks for listening to The Gamers Change Lives Podcast!