OpenseedVC has reached the first close of its $10 million fund for operator-led startups in Africa and Europe. Founded by former Octopus Ventures and Oxford Seed Fund investor Maria Rotilu, OpenseedVC is a new solo General Partner (GP) that aims to be the first check for startups. OpenSeedVC: Filling a Crucial Funding Gap According to Sifted, Rotilu is Europe’s first Black solo GP and one of the first female solo GPs in the region. Rotilu’s strategy with OpenseedVC is to back startups even earlier than the pre-seed stage, at a
Endeavor Miami is partnering with venture capital firm DeepWork Capital to funnel more capital into underrepresented early-stage founders. Endeavor Miami and DeepWork Capital Endeavor Miami was founded in 2013, with the support of the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, as the first U.S. affiliate of Endeavor, an organization supporting entrepreneurs worldwide. According to Biz Journals, Miami’s Endeavor entrepreneurs generated over $700 million in revenues and employed over 5,000 individuals in 2021. Now the organization has partnered with DeepWork Capital, an Orlando-based early-stage venture capital firm that primarily invests in tech and
A new report by Dropbox DocSend has shed light on the funding divide in the tech industry, particularly regarding race and gender disparities among founders. While 2021 witnessed record-breaking levels of VC funding and increased engagement with diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives, 2022 proved to be more challenging for historically underfunded founders. Turning tides In 2021, VC funding for early-stage founders experienced a significant boost, with record-breaking funding levels. Historically underrepresented founders also experienced a surge of investor interest driven by DEI-related investment initiatives in response to the murder
