Global Venture Capital initiative U-Start has recently rounded-off its 2014 conference series in Cape Town, South Africa, and announced further penetration to the Central and Eastern European region as well as the launch of U-Start Ventures — its new investment vehicle to carry €30-million (over R418-million) by mid-2015.
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Apart from the conferences, the global boutique advisory firm is also responsible for the U-Start Club which is an international group of private investors which is aimed at sourcing investors’ money into the most perspective and carefully pre-selected and pre-qualified startups.
U-Start believes that apart from the strong growth opportunities, emerging markets such as Africa, Latin America, and Central and Eastern Europe are the main destination for investors keen to diversify their portfolios. CEO of U-Start Stefano Guidotti says elaborates:
There is a huge growth in markets or specific verticals in emerging markets and growing economies, rather than in mature ones. And this creates opportunity to create a portfolio that is diversified, leveraging the opportunities, which are still there in mainland Europe and the US, but also in the growing markets.
Apart from new markets, U-Start Conference was also discovering new investment trends, like growing role of family offices in the VC investments.
Read more: U-Start Africa: SA entrepreneurship is in a very good space
Viktoriya Tigipko U-Start Ventures partner went on to say that U-Start Ventures wants to bridge the gap between international financing and internet entrepreneurs, to facilitate the process of raising money for internet entrepreneurs on the rising markets, and to scale this on the global level, to make investors more involved and more active. He elaborates:
U-Start Conferences and U-Start Club are the best networking platforms for them, and U-Start Ventures is an effective investment vehicle backed up with the successful track record and diverse background of its founders. We just started the fundraising process, and are to close €30-million in the first half of 2015.
The next U-Start Africa conference will take place in November, 2015 and present insightful and high level content stream and startup competition with the best representatives of the vibrant local tech scene.
