Celo Announces Web3 Fund for African Startups Looking to Transition From Web2
With the goal of supporting an inclusive financial system that contributes to prosperity for all, mobile-first blockchain ecosystem, Celo, has launched a new program to support African startups across:
- Payments
- Remittances
- Virtual assets
- Savings, and
- Related financial services
The Celo Africa Web3 Fund will help provide financial investments through its VC partners and technical assistance through the Celo Developer Guild and technical partners such as Tatum and Ape Unit. This will enable Web2 founders across Africa to adopt a strategy and scale their businesses to achieve deeper financial inclusion, lower transaction costs and more affordable credit.
Together with multiple partners including Unicorn Growth Capital, Ape Unit, Echo VC, Uncovered Fund and Flori Ventures, Celo has launched an open call for Web2 founders from payments, remittances, crypto, savings, lending and related financial services sectors with an interest in crypto to apply for the Celo Africa Web3 Fund by July 15, 2022.
Celo and its partners pledge to support shortlisted candidates to facilitate their transition to Web3.
According to Daniel Kimotho, Celo Ecosystem Lead, Kenya:
“Pan-African startups and businesses regularly meet scaling challenges navigating disparate regional currencies, expensive payment and collection infrastructure, and capital controls in some markets. Decentralized finance (DeFi) is a viable solution, which is where Celo’s ecosystem comes in.”
Here are some benefits of the program:
- Up to 50 successful applicants in each key country will secure access to equity investors, venture capital funding, technical and business mentorship, marketing support, and Decentralized Exchange Listing opportunities
- Each successful startup will also be considered to join Celo’s Alliance for Prosperity, which allows for collaborations across the technology stack, resulting in integrated solutions that better serve the needs of users around the world
The Celo Africa Web3 Fund will include an in-person workshop across 5 African countries, led by the Celo ecosystem’s Africa team.
The first in-country workshop will kick off in Nairobi on the July 26, 2022, together with venture capital and tech partners:
- Unicorn Growth Capital
- Ape Unit
- Echo VC
- Uncovered Fund
- Dream VC and
- Flori Ventures
Additional workshops will follow in Uganda, Nigeria, Ghana, and South Africa between July and November 2022.
The Celo Africa Web3 Fund builds on Celo’s active presence in several African countries where Celo is engaged with local developer communities, and where it has been running pioneering pilots in the areas of microwork, micropayments, and DeFi lending, together with international and local partners such as Mercy Corps Ventures, Cinch, and Kotani Pay.
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