Rebekah Kasumu is on a mission to level the playing field for first-time fund managers. With over 15 years of experience in private markets, she recently launched Flourish Partners, a firm dedicated to helping emerging fund managers navigate the complex world of launching and growing their funds. A Career Built on Experience Kasumu’s track record spans leadership roles at top-tier firms. Before starting Flourish Partners, she worked as Partner and Head of Finance at Localglobe, managing over $2 billion in assets across more than 15 funds. She also led finance and
Women’s health company Perelel has acquired LOOM, a sexual and reproductive health information platform co-founded by Erica Chidi. Chidi, a doula and health educator, joins Perelel as a strategic advisor, where she will use her expertise to advance the shared mission of supporting women and people with uteruses through their reproductive health journeys. LOOM’s Journey In 2017, Erica Chidi and Quinn Lundberg founded LOOM to fill gaps in reproductive health education, particularly for diverse communities. LOOM offers regulatory-compliant guidance and personalized support throughout different phases of sexual and reproductive health,
Propelle, a new investment platform tailored specifically for women, launched on September 25 with an ambitious aim: to close the UK’s gender wealth gap. The platform, founded by 40-year-old Ayesha Ofori, a former Goldman Sachs Executive Director, empowers women to invest confidently and build wealth. Closing The Gender Investment Gap During her six years at Goldman Sachs, Ofori managed over £500 million ($663 million) in client assets and saw firsthand how the investment world primarily benefited the wealthy—and predominantly men. With the UK’s gender investment gap currently standing at £1.65
SOJO, a Deliveroo-style clothing repair and alterations collection and delivery app, has announced a new partnership with a major UK retailer The Black woman-owned platform will power Marks and Spencer’s (M&S) new clothing repairs and alterations service. Making clothing repairs mainstream Founder Josephine Philips was driven by a belief in a slower and more considered approach to society’s relationship with fashion, leading her to start SOJO in 2021. The collaboration with M&S aims to make clothing repairs more accessible and mainstream, aligning with both companies’ commitments to sustainability. The partnership
This year, on Juneteenth, angel investing group Untapped Investing announced its launch to support Black and underrepresented founders. Founded by Mica Eades Mayo, Attica Alexis Jacques, and Felicia Mayo, Untapped Investing aims to create lasting change through purpose-driven ventures. Empowering Underrepresented Founders By investing in Black and underrepresented founders, Untapped Investing aims to generate opportunities that lead to generational wealth and sustainable growth. This collective effort will reshape the venture capital landscape, ensuring that visionary founders, historically overlooked, receive the support they need to thrive, they wrote on LinkedIn. Untapped
Terri Burns, 26, the youngest partner in GV’s history and its first Black female partner, is launching her firm, Type Capital, according to Fortune. Breaking the Heat Cycle During her time at GV, formerly Google Ventures, Burns witnessed a recurrent issue within VC funding strategies: the reliance on “heat” from other investors before committing to a deal. “A lot of investors are driven by heat, versus being driven by true innovation,” she told Fortune. “[Founders are] talking to amazing investors, they’re getting some interest, but no one’s really willing to take the leap
Dr. Dionne Mahaffey has developed an AI-powered platform, Behavioral Health Notes, to decrease the time mental health professionals spend recording notes. The Need For Efficiency in Mental Health Documentation The mental health sector has long faced challenges related to clinician burnout, increased by time-consuming administrative tasks. According to a recent report by Accenture, using AI in healthcare could save up to $150 billion annually by 2026, mainly by reducing such inefficiencies. A solution was needed for mental health professionals, where documentation can extend into personal time. Introducing Behavioral Health Notes Dr. Mahaffey, a
Leigh Higginbotham Butler has a pioneering AI platform and network for Black women, Akina. Akina, which means “strong family bond” in Swahili, originated from a personal need to create a safe space for discussions and support among Black mothers. It has since evolved into a Community-as-a-Service (CaaS) app and platform that leverages culturally competent AI and machine learning technology. From A Social Network To A Movement Akina was initially started 2020 as a social media platform for Black mothers. “It came about in the aftermath of the murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmuad
Black women remain the fastest-growing group of entrepreneurs, more than doubling in number since August 2019, according to a new report by GoDaddy Venture Forward. GoDaddy Venture Forward is a research initiative that quantifies the impact of over 20 million microbusinesses on their local economies and provides a unique view into these entrepreneurs’ attitudes, demographics, and needs. In August 2023, Venture Forward completed its 10th national survey with responses from over 6,000 small business owners across the US and UK. Black microbusiness ownership Most of the businesses surveyed were microbusinesses,
This article was first published by Lindsey Redd on Medium. Over the past couple of weeks I’ve been meeting with current and hopeful founders who want to become Y Combinator founders. They’re applying to the Winter 2024 batch, and naturally have a ton of questions about our experience applying and being accepted to YC. One of the main questions I get is “What was your interview experience like?” Of course, before there was the interview, there was the application. This is a story in and of itself that I’ll save for
