Press Release: Uncap launches innovative funding & growth platform to give local early-stage founders access to unbiased and remote capital

[Press release] UNCAP LAUNCHES INNOVATIVE FUNDING & GROWTH PLATFORM TO GIVE LOCAL EARLY STAGE FOUNDERS ACCESS TO UNBIASED AND REMOTE CAPITAL.

August 9, 2021

- Application for funding is NOW open to registered limited companies in Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, and Nigeria
- Businesses seeking funding between 10,000-50,000 USD
- Businesses should be operational for more than 12 months and up to 4 years
- Businesses should have an existing product or service in the market and generated consistent revenues over a period of at least 12 months from an established customer base.
- Businesses should have a business model that can scale over time, i.e., grow nationally, or regionally.

Uncap is a funding platform seeking to revolutionize access to early-stage funding in Africa. Their main mission is to make early-stage funding accessible to every good entrepreneur in sub-Saharan Africa. Early-stage entrepreneurs are usually considered too risky for bank financing and their funding needs are too large for microfinance and too small for venture capital investors. This led Uncap to develop a new way of funding using a fully remote, data-driven, and highly streamlined process as well as an innovative investment model. They will be furnishing existing businesses in need of capital between 10,000 and 50,000 USD.

Uncap invests through an revenue-based revenue sharing model. This means that the model is designed to address the needs of early-stage businesses and stipulates that Uncap buys a share in the entrepreneur’s business, which is then re-purchased by the entrepreneur at a pre-agreed price over time, as a percentage of their revenues. Post investment, every entrepreneur gets access to a personalized dashboard. This dashboard delivers valuable data insights into key financial and non-financial KPIs and access to resources and training programs from local capacity-building partners to support the founders on their journey. “We strongly believe in the founders we invest in and want them to be in the driver seat of their business. That means we give them room to grow at their own speed and trust them to make the right decisions. We only hold a minority stake, don’t take any board seats, and generally don’t get involved if not needed” Franziska Reh, Uncap CEO.

The application period will be open for 2 months and consists of a series of questions and assessments. Uncap believes that good entrepreneurs run good businesses, and especially in early-stage businesses the profile of the founder has the biggest impact on its success. Instead of using pitch decks or business plans, lengthy meetings, or investment committees, Uncap chose to rethink how funding decisions are being made. Their application process mainly focuses on quantifiably assessing the founder’s entrepreneurial potential and their knowledge of their business.

Since launching in 2019, Uncap has invested in 27 companies to test and refine its approach. This funding round aims to test Uncap’s ability to scale its investments to more than 100 companies in one batch. The company aims high to revolutionize access to funding by reaching 50,000 entrepreneurs by 2030, equaling 1 billion USD in investments deployed and 1 million jobs created. To view the eligibility criteria and apply, register at www.unconventional.capital.

Press Contact

Wambui Karebe

Marketing & Communications Lead

wambui@unconventional.capital

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