Fund worth R1-million opens for local fintech startups 

Imvelo Ventures, a South African venture capital company has launched an R1-million funding opportunity for innovative local fintech startups. 

 Applications for the funding programme close on 31 December 2020

Successful applicants will win a share of R1-million in funding. In addition, the selected fintech startups will receive strategic marketing and business strategy mentoring, access to an extensive network of businesses, strong B-BBEE credentials, and business 

Anton Bauman, Director of Imvelo Ventures sheds light on the type of fintech’s that the new fund is targetted at. 

“We invest in South African businesses developing unique fintech solutions for South African problems. We identify startups with a combination of commercial potential and social impact, and for this round we’re also looking for companies already generating revenue.”

Imvelo Ventures, a venture capital investment company founded by Capitec Bank and Empowerment Capital Investment Partners, is working among others to identify and fund promising South African small and medium enterprises (SMMEs) in the broad spectrum of financial technology.

How to apply

A total of up to 10 fintechs will be selected for the fund. 

Interested applicants must complete an online assessment before 31 December 2020. 

If successful, the fintech startup will move onto the second round of assessment which will be conducted by in-depth interviews with the Imvelo team and their advisors at the start of 2021. 

Requirements

Applicants must meet the following criteria to be eligible for the funding programme: 

• Have a unique vision for the South African market 
• Already actively generate revenue
• Have the potential to scale and plans to realise growth
• Combine commercial interests with social impact

Baumann expands on the requirements for the new round of funding opportunities. 

“Successful businesses and their owners require different forms of support as they evolve from concept to startup to sustainable, profitable company. For this round of funding, we’re concentrating our efforts on established SMMEs that are ready to scale.”

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Featured image: NESA by Makers via Unsplash