The price of Bitcoin is surging. A new all time high for BTC reaching above $50K this month has everyone talking, bitcoin, crypto and investing. Major institutional investors, celebrity endorsements and payments firms like Mastercard and PayPal are investing in the cryptocurrency. Since the creation of Bitcoin 11 years ago, a growing number of people are turning to a new monetary system, one that is not controlled by any single authority. Cryptocurrency is a decentralized system run by a network of computers. In what some call a financial revolution, the rise in popularity of
What we know for so far Colin Kaepernick intends to raise $250 million through a SPAC, a blank-check company. Named ‘Mission Advancement’ it will target a $1billion US company that has a social mission. The SPAC board is made up entirely of Black, Indigenous and people of color and majority women. Colin Kaepernick, the former San Francisco 49ers quarterback who took a knee during the national anthem to protest systemic racism and police brutality —is now searching for a $1 billion company with a social purpose. Kaepernick known for his
Kicking off Black History Month in the US Backstage Capital has announced they’re opening their fund to allow regular people to invest alongside Backstage Capital. Through the crowdsourcing platform, Republic, individuals will have easier access to become venture capitalists. Opening the doors of opportunity for regular people to invest like a VC. It’s already raised $1M from over 2000 investors, with amounts as a little as $100. Leading the way with a new approach to venture capital investing, accredited and non-accredited investors can invest alongside Backstage giving talented underrepresented founders access to capital.
The number of Black-owned businesses has risen dramatically. Research shows, since 2007, the number of firms owned by African-American women has grown by 164%. Yet despite the knowledge, innovation, and let’s face it – the hustle, minority entrepreneurs, are being shut out when it comes to access to capital. However, many Black and Brown celebrities are growing their investment portfolios and flexing their VC muscle. Not only are they investing in startups and hooking up founders with serious capital, but they are also using their platform and wealth to empower
Cummins is hiring on pocitjobs.com “I realize that I am one of the highest-ranking African Americans in a Fortune 200 company across all of North America,” David Ojo confesses. “That is a very scary proposition for me.” As Cummins’ Director of Analytics and Artificial Intelligence, David shares his career journey, the important guidance and mentorship he’s received to rise through the ranks, and his next initiatives to improve the company’s pipeline for Black hires. He understands his important role in not only affirming the self-beliefs of many Black employees and
The year 2020 sprung the coronavirus surprise on the whole world, a surprise it is yet to recover from. After a year without a cure, two clinically tested and globally approved vaccines were released early in December 2020. One is manufactured by American pharmaceutical firm — Pfizer — and German BioNTech SE, while American biotech company, Moderna, is responsible for the other. However, two African countries had taken steps to provide a cure before the release of the vaccines in December. Madagascar’s President, Andry Rajoelina, unveiled Covid-Organics — a herbal remedy for
Update: Meet Five Black-Led Startups That Have Achieved Unicorn Status The term unicorn in the tech space is synonymous with hugely successful tech companies (think Uber, Airbnb, Stripe, Pinterest, & DropBox). Its a term given to a private company with a $1 billion valuation. Although still very much a rarity, the number of unicorn startups is higher than ever. According to recent stats, there are 506 tech unicorns globally. So how does a company founded by a POC reach unicorn status? There is no definitive recipe for success. When less than
Damilola Olokesusi is the Co-founder and CEO of Shuttlers, a tech transport startup. In 2015, Olokesusi and her friends — Damilola Quadry and Busola Majekodunmi — were frustrated by the stress of commuting in Lagos, Nigeria. And following some nasty experiences, they decided to start Shuttlers. “One of my sisters got into a one-chance bus (a commercial bus used for robbing passengers), and it was a traumatic experience for me. She was taken to another destination where they were abducted and robbed. Having had our different bus experiences, we realised it was a collective pain point for us.
What You Will Learn in This Post I will share hard numbers, actual decisions, and strategic reasoning with you so you can learn from what my cofounders and I did and see that it is OK to take risks where you don’t know for sure if something is going to work out. I will not discuss the unique operating decisions or industry dynamics because they are not important to embrace the spirit of our experience so that you may be encouraged to go boldly to build your vision. You will
As a Black man in venture capital, the last few months have been eye-opening. The national conversations about social justice led to an increased awareness of the challenges faced by underrepresented founders and funders in our industry. People and organizations have since stepped up to create pathways to invest in more founders from underrepresented backgrounds. And I couldn’t be happier to see this happen. But I’ve noticed something else taking place on the sidelines. Many onlookers view investing with a representation lens as a constraint, rather than a thoughtful investment
